Born to Run
by vaughnloveralwaysandforev
Summary: MIRACLE COMPLETE! Robbie McClanahan only commits himself to hockey. Party girl Laura Campbell commits herself to having fun. After meeting, will they be able to get over their commitment issues, or will an attempt at a relationship be disasterous?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Well, my new story is finally up. It's about Mac, and the OC, Laura, in my story Glory Days. This one begins before the Olympics and ends sometime after, so it's a parallel story to Glory Days. You **don't** actually need to read that to know what's going on in this one though, because everything will be made clear enough, and this story is different enough. I hope you enjoy it and please review to tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: Sorry to disappoint you, but I don't own Miracle or any of the hot guys in it. All I can do is watch the movie and wish that I owned it.

Chapter 1

March 1978

"Who's ready to party?" Phil Verchota said as he and his friends were leaving the locker room after their last hockey game of the season.

"Dude, we just lost," replied Rob McClanahan.

"Come on, Mac, lighten up. It's not like we were making the playoffs anyway."

"Yeah, but the game was so close," said Mac. "And it was at home." The University of Minnesota lost their final game to Colorado College by only one goal. Mac was most upset because he had a chance to tie it and the end and blew it.

"So what?" said Steve Christoff. "People will be over it by the time we get to the party."

"Come on. Let's get Mr. Most Determined drunk and laid. After a few beers and getting some action, he'll feel all better," said Phil. Lately, Mac's closest friends on the team had begun referring to him as 'Mr. Most Determined' because of the award he won for the season. Mac made an attempt to smile and knew Phil was right. About the beer at least.

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Laura Campbell was in her room getting ready for the big end of the hockey season party that night at a big house off campus. She had a short, jean mini skirt and a pink fitted shirt on, and her long dirty blonde hair was down, just passed her shoulders and perfectly straight. After putting on large hoop earrings and the finishing touches on her makeup, she was ready to go.

"Hey Whit. Almost ready?" she asked her roommate.

"Yeah, one second." Whitney finished putting her blonde hair up and sprayed some perfume on and was then ready to go. The two girls left to meet up with two of their other friends, Erica and Debbie, before leaving the dorms for a night of fun.

Laura had known the three girls since her freshman year at the University of Minnesota. The four lived on the same floor and did almost everything together, becoming fast friends. Partying and guys seemed to be the two most important things in the girl's lives.

Although the girls were always at parties and seemed to be popular, they were not as well liked as they liked to think. Most other girls that knew them well, especially the ones with boyfriends, couldn't stand them, because Laura and her friends flirted a lot with almost any guy that showed interest.

When the four girls got to the party, it was already crowded. Laura saw a lot of people that she recognized.

"Oh my God, hide me please," Whitney said, turning away and almost standing behind Laura.

"Why?"

"That guy over there, with the black jacket and jeans . . . I totally blew him off last weekend. He invited me upstairs at the frat party and I was going to go. Until . . . I met this other, better-looking guy. I went with him instead and later I found out that the guys are best friends. And I heard the guy I blew off has syphilis or something anyway," Whitney explained.

"Let's go this way then," Debbie said, walking in the direction of the kitchen. "I need some beer." Walking into the kitchen, the girls saw a few guys also getting drinks.

"Hey. Good party, huh?" Erica asked, making conversation.

"Yeah. It'll be better once I'm plastered and upstairs with a beautiful blonde like you," one of the guys said. Erica smiled.

"And you are . . . ?"

"Tim. Tim Harrer."

"Nice to meet you, Tim," Erica said, smiling. "I'm Erica. Wait. You play hockey, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I usually don't talk to the hockey players on campus, they're generally too cocky, but then again, who said anything about talking. A minute later, she added, "Are you going to introduce the rest of us to your friends? We have a rule that we don't leave each other without making sure we all have a guy." Tim smiled, knowing exactly where Erica was going with that. Before he could begin introductions, Mike Ramsey interrupted him.

"We've already met," Rammer said to Debbie. "You're in my Psych class."

"Yeah. I know you from somewhere else though," Debbie said hinting at something. "You probably don't remember. That's understandable though. You were very drunk. I'm lucky I remember that night."

"It's hard to forget a guy like me though," Rammer said with a wink.

Laura was a little disappointed with the choices she had left. None of the other guys were nearly as cute as Mike Ramsey, but he was happy talking to Debbie. She tried edging her way in their conversation, but Debbie succeeded in keeping Mike's attention on her. After finishing getting drinks, the group went back into the living room. Whitney and Laura decided to walk around and talk to other people, while Debbie and Erica stayed with the hockey players.

When Laura and Whitney went back to the living room where their friends were an hour later, neither was surprised to see Erica sitting on Tim's lap, with one hand on his chest, the other around his neck, and his arms around her waist. Debbie was also getting pretty cosy with Mike.

"Hey girls. One of you can take my spot on the couch," Erica said, seeing Laura and Whitney. "We're going upstairs for a little bit," she said, standing up and pulling Tim with her. Laura jumped at the chance to sit down.

"I'll sit there. I feel like I'm about to fall over."

"You can sit here," Debbie told Whitney, also getting up. "I'm getting ready to leave." She then turned to Mike. "Ready?" He nodded and the two of them left as well.

Laura was sitting between two guys that she met earlier, though she couldn't remember their names. The one on her right started making small talk with her. After a minute, he put his arm on the couch behind her shoulders, and Laura wanted him to leave. He said something else to her, but Laura didn't respond.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I could really use some water. I feel like I might pass out," Laura said, blinking a few times, pretending to be really dizzy.

"I'll get some," the guy said getting up immediately.

"Hey Phil," the guy on Laura's other side said. "Get me another beer."

After Phil was gone for a minute, two other guys came over.

"Is anyone sitting there?" he asked Laura.

"No," she said. He was much cuter than the other guy, and Laura really didn't want him to come back and sit again. The guy seemed to know the other hockey players and began talking to them.

"I'm Robbie McClanahan by the way," he said to Laura, sticking out his hand.

"I'm Laura Campbell."

"Hey, you stole my seat, Mac" Phil said, who had come back with Laura's water. Laura took it and thanked him, though she hadn't even really wanted water. She felt fine, but just wanted Phil to leave.

"Move your feet, lose your seat," Robbie said. "Fine. There's a girl in the kitchen I wanted to talk to anyway." Phil left again, and Robbie turned to Laura.

"You really didn't want that water, did you?" Robbie asked, knowing from the way she was looking at it that she didn't want it.

"Not really," she responded.

"I'll get you something. What do you want?"

"Well, I could go for another beer, but I don't want you to lose your seat."

"Don't worry about that. If someone takes my seat, you can just sit on my lap," he said with a smile. Laura liked him a lot more than Phil. Suddenly, the evening was looking up.

After an hour of sitting with Robbie and a few other hockey players, Laura had quite a bit more to drink, including some strong shots. She was now on her third beer, leaning back against Robbie. He was talking about hockey with his friends and had one arm was wrapped around Laura's waist and his other hand was holding a beer. Once he finished, Robbie looked at Laura.

Robbie thought she was attractive, but he didn't know how she felt about him. Eventually he decided to make the next move. He pulled her hair away from where it was covering her ear and leaned in close to her.

"This party's a lot of fun, but I think I'd rather go somewhere else. Maybe somewhere where we could be alone," he whispered in her ear.

"Sounds good to me. I'm getting sick of hearing all about the Minnesota North Stars. I know more now than I ever cared to. Plus, this skirt is getting really uncomfortable." Robbie took that as a definite hint and began standing up.

"Let's go. We can head to my room if you want. My roommate's not going to be around."

"Is he still here?" Laura asked, having heard something about Robbie's roommate being at the party earlier.

"I don't know. But he forgot his key and I won't be letting him in tonight." Laura smiled and got up with Robbie. Luckily he still had his arm around her, because Laura was so lightheaded and dizzy she thought she would fall over without him supporting her.

By the time they got to the dorms, Robbie and Laura were feeling the effects of the alcohol. Alone on the elevator, they began making out and barely stopped until they got to Robbie's door. He pulled away from her to find his key and unlock the door. Laura stood near him, becoming impatient and began gently sucking the side his neck, just under his ear. Robbie opened the door and pulled Laura inside. She pushed him back up against the open doorway and they kissed. Robbie then turned and pinned Laura against the door, holding her arms and kissing her neck. He trailed kisses down her neck and chest, and stopped at the top of her shirt. Before they got any father, Laura interrupted him.

"Aren't we going to shut the door?" she asked. Robbie nodded and let go of Laura's arms. She moved forward and began kissing Robbie again, then kicked the door shut, not stopping for a breath.


	2. Chapter 2

meadow567: Glad you were excited, I was excited to finally start posting it. Thanks for the review.

NellieBly413672: Yeah, Debbies . . . lol. I just had to use that as one of the names cause it fit so perfectly. Anyway, thanks for the review and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

justlikewedo: Aww, thanks. :) I never really planned on writing this until after I wrote Glory Days and liked Robbie and Laura together. And since there aren't too many Mac stories, I figured he needed a girl. Thanks for reviewing!

xcapitalbarbie90: Thanks :) Gotta love Phil. He's funny, and from the movie, I always picture him to be stupid funny, so he has a lot of lines that are funny and/or stupid. Thanks again and enjoy the chapter.

A/N: Sorry this took so long to get up, but I'm so busy with school I'll probably only be updating once a week. I'm hoping to update every Friday or Saturday. Anyway, here's the next one and please review! Reading reviews makes me happy! )

Chapter 2

Laura woke up late Sunday morning with a major headache. She rolled over, wanting to bury her head under her pillow because even without opening her eyes, the sunlight was making things worse. Instead of rolling over closer to the wall though, she was surprised to roll onto something - more like someone.

Opening her eyes, Laura was somewhat surprised to see a shirtless guy sleeping next to her. A very good looking shirtless guy at that. Then she realized that she wasn't in her room either, and the previous night slowly came back to her. She remembered most of it, and was pretty sure the guy's name was Robbie.

Laura put a hand up to her head, wishing the pounding would stop. She continued lying in bed, thinking about what to do. She could either get up and leave without Robbie knowing, or wait until he woke up and make things awkward. Laura had no idea if he would remember their activities from the previous night, or even her name for that matter. Just as Laura made the decision to leave, he stirred and woke up.

"Shit," Robbie said when he saw Laura. He didn't notice that Laura was awake because she closed her eyes and pretended to be sleeping before he saw her. She didn't want to make the situation more awkward than it already was.

Robbie got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom, trying to determine what he would do. He hoped Laura would leave while he was in the bathroom, but he knew it wasn't very likely. From experience, Robbie knew that girls automatically assumed a relationship began after a hook up. A relationship was the last thing he wanted though.

As soon as the bathroom door was shut, Laura attempted to make a run for it. She got up and threw the remainder of her clothes on, which were scattered around the room. She couldn't find her left shoe though, and began frantically searching when she heard the toilet flush.

In the meantime, Robbie was stalling in the bathroom. Robbie knew he would have to face her eventually though, and walked out, seeing Laura getting ready to leave. She looked up.

"Hi."

"Hi," Robbie responded. Neither said anything and Robbie avoided eye contact as Laura averted her eyes from his bare chest.

"This is awkward," Laura finally admitted. "I'm just looking for my shoe, then I'll leave. I know you must have things to do."

"Uh, yeah."

"Me too." After a minute of silence while they both awkwardly looked for Laura's show, Robbie spoke up.

"So, do you remember last night?"

"Parts."

"Okay. I only remember parts too." Laura half smiled and then looked under the bed, where she found her other shoe.

"Found it." She out it on. "Well, I guess I'll be leaving now."

"Okay. See you around."

"Yeah." Laura let herself out and Robbie silently thanked her for leaving and not wanting to stick around.

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"Oh my God, you so got laid last night!" Whitney said that afternoon, as she and Laura were eating lunch. Laura just smiled. "When are you seeing him again?" Whitney asked.

"I don't think ever. Last night was fun, but I think that is all either of us are looking for. Some fun."

"Fuck buddies?"

"I don't think so."

"Well, if you don't want him, I'll take him. I'm not one to pass up a willing guy." Laura raised her eyebrows slightly. "I'm not."

"I know. Neither am I, normally. There's just something about him. He seems nice."

"And that's bad why?" Whitney asked.

"I don't want to start liking him. If we're just gonna sleep together, I can't like him."

"So, what, you want to hate him?"

"No, but I can't start liking him. Things would get way too complicated."

"I get it," Whitney said. "So that means you don't want him right?" Laura just rolled her eyes in response.

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"Well, well, well. So glad you could join us, Mac," Rammer said as Mac walked into the lounge that afternoon. Rammer, Jannie, Verchota, and Christoff were watching a baseball game and eating popcorn. Robbie didn't respond and just sat on the couch, taking a handful of popcorn.

"Morning sunshine," Verchota said, teasing him. "Looks like someone's glad to be alive."

"Shut up, Verchota. I have a major headache and don't feel like listening to your jokes."

"Mr. Grumpy," Verchota said under his breath. "Sounds like someone didn't get laid last night."

"I did to, thank you very much. I'm just a little hungover."

"We could tell," Jannie commented.

"Did you just get up?" Rammer asked.

"A little while ago," Robbie answered.

"So who was that girl anyway?" Christoff asked.

"Laura."

"Does Laura have a last name?" he asked.

"How the hell should I know? We didn't do much talking," Robbie said sarcastically.

"Okay . . . you slept with a girl you just met, and you didn't go to church this morning. What's your mother going to say?" Verchota teased him. The guys were always teasing Robbie because his mom was constantly calling to check up on him.

"Did I tell you to leave me alone?" Robbie asked in response.

"And God hates you now too," Verchota added, ignoring Robbie.

"Screw you," Robbie said, throwing his last piece of popcorn at Verchota.

"No, you're the one that was screwed. The girl I was with wanted to "take things slow" and I didn't get any," Verchota said.

"Oh, so she was one of the "let's start a relationship" types," Rammer deduced.

"I don't think so," said Verchota. "Twenty minutes after I left her, I saw her go upstairs with some football player."

"That sucks man," commented Christoff.

The guys continued talking about girls and watching the game for the rest of the afternoon. Robbie started to wonder why Laura didn't want to talk or mention seeing him again. Most girls mentioned that right away. He had to admit, she was pretty. Robbie knew he would never start a relationship with her though. But he did sort of want to see her again. After a few minutes of daydreaming, Robbie finally snapped out of it, knowing he shouldn't think about Laura. He never thought about the girls after other one night stands, so why was she any different? _Maybe because she is different, _thought Robbie. _She's not attached to me like other girls usually are_.

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The next day, Robbie was on his way to a history class, which was on the fifth floor of the building. He stepped on the empty elevator and just before the door shut, someone ran over, trying to make it on. Robbie quickly reacted and stuck his hand in the door to open it. Upon seeing the girl who he opened the door for, Robbie wished he hadn't. It was Laura.

"Thanks," she said, not really noticing him at first.

"No problem."

"Oh, hey Robbie," Laura said as she pressed the button for the seventh floor.

"Hey Laura. What's going on?"

"On my way to talk to my professor. How about you?"

"U.S. History," Robbie answered. There was an awkward silence as the elevator began to make its way to the fifth floor. It was the longest elevator ride of Robbie's life. Laura broke the silence though.

"So, I know the other morning was pretty awkward. I was going to leave before you came out of the bathroom to spare us both, but I needed my shoe." Robbie smiled.

"That's okay. I do have to admit though, it was awkward." Laura laughed.

"Well, at least now we have something to laugh about when we see each other around campus," Robbie said as the elevator doors opened.

"Yeah. See you around," Laura said as Robbie stepped off the elevator.


	3. Chapter 3

meadow567: Sorry I had to make you wait for it. School's been sooo busy! Hope you enjoy though. Thanks for the review.

NellieBly413672: Thanks! Hope you like this one too.

justlikewedo: Yeah, waking up to Mac would be nice ) I take almost any of those guys though. Thanks for the review and enjoy the chapter!

A/N: Hey guys, here's another. Hope you enjoy and please review! After this chapter, things should start moving a little quicker.

Chapter 3

A few weeks after the season ended on a Friday night, Robbie was at a bar near campus with his friends. He was playing a game of pool against Jannie and losing badly.

"I can't believe you're losing, Mac," said Tim Harrer.

"I can't believe Jannie's winning," said Verchota.

"Damn it!" Mac said as Jannie sunk the eight ball.

"I won!"

"That's a first," commented Rammer.

"Well, I beat Verchota one other time."

"Yeah, because he was so drunk he couldn't even stand up straight."

"I still won."

"Who's up for another game?" asked Rammer.

Tim offered to play him and the rest of the guys watched. Verchota began paying more attention to a few girls that walked into the bar though.

"Anyone want a drink?" he asked when he saw the girls walking up to the bar.

"Verchota, your glass is over half full," Robbie said. Then he noticed the girls.

"I actually think I could use a drink too," he said getting up.

"Dibs on the blonde," Phil said, following Robbie.

"All three are blondes," Robbie pointed out.

"I mean the platinum blonde," Verchota said, pointing out the one standing in the middle. The other two had darker blonde hair.

"Okay Verchota. Whatever you say."

Robbie and Verchota ordered their drinks and introduced themselves to the three girls, one of which Robbie took an instant liking to. After a few minutes of chatting, the girls followed the two guys to their table.

"Hey guys," Robbie said to the rest of his friends. "This is Carrie, Alex, and Valerie." The guys all said hi introduced themselves. While Tim and Rammer were finishing their game of pool, Robbie was talking to Valerie.

"Do you need another drink?" he asked when he saw her finish her beer.

"Yeah, sure," she said happily. "That would be great!" Robbie noticed that she was a little too enthusiastic, but didn't think much of it when he walked over to the bar. Valerie seemed really nice and outgoing, but by the end of the night, Robbie knew that nothing would come of meeting her. He found out that she liked being in serious relationships, but she hadn't been in one in over a year. She made a comment about how no guys feel the same way about her as she does about them.

"Really? That's weird," Robbie said in response. He didn't want to tell her that he wasn't surprised because hardly any guy wanted serious relationship, but he bit his tongue. Valerie continued to go on for another fifteen minutes on the subject, but Robbie thought it felt more like an hour and fifteen minutes. He couldn't wait to get out of there. Finally, Valerie stopped talking and he told her that he had to get going because he had to get up early the next morning.

The next morning, Robbie rolled out of bed at a little after eleven - anything but early. After he left the bar the previous night, Robbie stopped at a party and he and his friends stayed for a few hours, and Robbie didn't get to bed until four in the morning. He really didn't need to be up early anyway, but he needed to get away from Valerie.

After Robbie got dressed, he heard a knock on his door. His roommate wasn't around so Robbie went to answer it. He was very surprised to see who was standing on the other side.

"Hi Valerie. What are you doing here?" She smiled.

"I just came to surprise you."

"Well, this is a surprise," he said. "I didn't even think I told you where I lived." _And for a good reason, _he added silently.

"You didn't. But I have my ways of finding things out," Valerie said with a wide smile.

"Yeah . . . " Robbie said, not really knowing what else to say.

"So can I come in?"

"Uh, I'm actually just leaving. I'm meeting my friend, Mike for lunch."

"Oh. Well, I'm hungry. Where are you going?"

"I don't know yet. But it's a guy's lunch. His girlfriend isn't even coming," Robbie said. Rammer didn't even have a girlfriend, but Robbie couldn't come up with anything else.

"Well, maybe we could get together later."

"I can't. I have to study," Robbie said quickly.

"It's a Saturday night," Valerie pointed out.

"Yeah, but I have a lot of work to do, and I'm busy tomorrow. It's my mom's birthday and I'm going home for the day." That part Robbie wasn't lying about.

"Did you buy her a present yet?"

"Not yet."

"I'll go shopping with you!" Valerie offered excitedly.

"That's okay. I'm stopping at the store on my way."

"Well, how about I go with you and meet your family? After all, they have to meet me eventually." Robbie coughed, trying not to look too freaked by what Valerie was saying.

"What was that?"

"Well, I'm going to meet your family eventually. When two people are going out, that usually happens."

"Going out? As in dating?" Robbie asked worried.

"Yeah. I mean, I know it's not official yet, but it will be."

"Excuse me, are you talking about us?" Robbie asked, now very confused. _Why would she have the idea that we're dating . . . or ever will? Where on earth would she have gotten that idea? _Robbie wondered.

"Am I freaking you out?" Valerie asked, then continued before waiting for the answer. "I should have known. It's not like I haven't done it before. I really shouldn't move so fast. Guys hate that. Well, some do. Sorry, I'm rambling. I didn't mean to freak you out though. Take your time with us making things official." Valerie paused for a second and then continued. "I'll let you go. You need to get to lunch. Talk to you later," she said, walking away. Robbie stood at the door for another minute, going over the previous conversation in his head a few times. He still barely had a clue what had just happened, but he knew one thing. Valerie was crazy.

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Monday afternoon, Robbie went for lunch with Rammer between his classes. He had told Rammer a little about Saturday's encounter with Valerie, and promised to tell him more over lunch. They looked for a table in the crowded student union after they got their food, and Robbie explained more about what went on with Valerie.

"Sounds like she likes you," Rammer said.

"Obsessed is more like it. She's a fricken' stalker."

"Girls are psycho."

"Not all girls," a familiar voice said from behind Robbie. He recognized the girls voice, and turned around praying he wouldn't see Valerie standing there. Thankfully, it was Laura.

"Sorry, but I couldn't help but overhearing you guys," she said, sitting at the next table. "Sounds like you have a problem."

"Yeah I do," Robbie responded, without emotion. Laura and Rammer just laughed.

"It could be worse," Laura suggested.

"How?"

"She's got it pretty bad for him," Rammer said. Rammer then went on to tell Laura exactly what happened, and after hearing about it, Laura took back her previous comment.

"You do have a problem," she said and Robbie rolled his eyes.

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Over the next couple weeks, Robbie did his best to avoid Valerie. Even when he tried to be almost mean, she didn't take the hint. On Saturday night just before the end of the semester, Robbie went to a party, knowing Valerie would be there. He hoped to clear things up once and for all. When he got there, he immediately noticed Laura and her friends, who were all clearly drunk. He also noticed Valerie standing with her friends. Robbie quickly walked over to Laura before Valerie could notice him.

"Hey girls."

"Robbie - hey!" Laura said. "I haven't seen you in a few weeks. How are things with that crazy girl."

"Well, not that great, but hopefully she'll take the hint after tonight."

"If you want any help with that, let me know." Robbie took that as almost an invitation.

"I definitely will." Robbie smiled and then noticed Valerie walking over to him. "And I may need that help right now."

"Hey Robbie," Valerie said. "I didn't know you were coming tonight."

"Yeah, some girls were hoping to get lucky," he said, putting an arm around Laura, who went along with it. She turned to him and pretended to whisper something in his ear.

"Oh," Valerie said, sounding hurt. "Well, I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing then," she said walking away.

"That was easier than I thought," said Robbie. "Thanks Laura."

"It was nothing."

"Want to go get a drink?" he asked.

"Sure," Laura said with a smile. Robbie kept his arm around her as they went to get drinks. Robbie ran into some friends and talked with them before him and Laura went to sit down. There was a hockey game on TV and they watched a little. It got pretty crowded in the room because it was a playoff game and everyone wanted to watch, so Laura moved to Robbie's lap. A while after the game was over, Robbie was ready to leave.

"Hey," he said, leaning close to Laura and softly kissing her neck, "want to get out of here?"

"Sure," she said, standing up and grabbing Robbie's hand, which was on her waist. "Your room or mine?"

"How about yours this time?"

"Let's go."

Robbie and Laura went back to her room and the night went about the same as the last time they were together, with the exception being that this time, things were much less awkward the next morning.

Both Robbie and Laura woke up with headaches, but Robbie was glad it was Laura he was waking up next to and not someone else.

"Good morning."

"It is a good morning. Better than last time," Laura said.

"That's for sure."

"I had fun last night."

"So did I. Lots of fun." Laura smiled and nodded. They laid in bed a few more minutes, both trying to get the motivation to get out of bed.

"Well, I better get going. I have a lot of studying to do today. My exams start Monday," Robbie said.

"Yeah, I should get up too. I have to start packing to go home."

"Well, thanks again for an amazing night," Robbie said, emphasizing amazing.

"Well, you deserve some credit," Laura said with a mischievous smile.

"Bye Laura," Robbie said, walking out the door and closing it behind him.

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After Laura got most of her room packed, she went to meet Whitney, Debbie, and Erica for dinner. Whitney stayed in Debbie and Erica's room the previous night, because she knew Laura was with Robbie.

"Hey girls," Laura said when she got to the dining hall.

"Hey slut," Debbie said, jokingly.

"Did you two animals go at it all night?" Whitney asked. Laura joked back.

"Not all night. Robbie needed a ten minute break to recoop."

"He's hot," commented Erica.

"Is he as hot naked?" Debbie asked. Laura rolled her eyes.

"Is that any of your business?"

"He has big feet. You know what that means," stated Whitney, again joking.

"Guys! What I do with Robbie when we're alone is none of your business."

"I tell you things," Debbie pointed out. "Like about that guy Chris . . . and how he had a major problem finishing anything."

"I never asked about his 'problems'."

"But I still told you."

"Well, that's different."

"Different how?" asked Erica. "The situation was basically the same."

"Not really," Laura said. "You had a meaningless one night stand with some complete stranger -" Erica cut her off.

"So what were you and Robbie before? Cause I thought you just met that first night."

"We did. But last night was a second time."

"So that makes it more than a one nighter," added Whitney.

"Big deal. Two nights," said Debbie, not caring. "I still wanna know how good he was."

"It was good, okay?" Laura said, wanting them to drop it.

"Maybe I'll have to find out how good for myself," Erica said casually.

"Erica," Laura said, with an almost betrayed expression.

"Do you care? I didn't think you were dating or anything."

"So? You don't sleep with the same guy I'm sleeping with."

"Well, I think that's for him to decide, don't you? I mean, if he wants to sleep with multiple people, you can't really stop him," Sensing an argument, Whitney quickly changed the subject.

"Who's ready for the psych final?"

"Definitely not me," said Debbie. "That thing is going to kick my ass." Laura and Erica both joined the conversation about their final exams, while Laura really began thinking hard about what Erica had said. She wasn't dating Robbie, so why did she care if he slept with other girls?


	4. Chapter 4

meadow567: I'm really sorry I couldn't post more than one this weekend. I'm always so busy. Usually Friday afternoons are my story writing days, because I get done with classes early. Unfortunately, I have tons of homework to finish the rest of the weekend though. Thanks for the review though, and enjoy the chapter!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, Valerie was psycho. But she's gone now! Thanks for the review!!

justlikewedo: Thanks for the review, glad you liked it. And I just wish that someday I'll wake up to someone that looks like one of them. Permanently wake up to someone like that though. As in like marry someone like one of them, lol. enjoy the chapter!

A/N: Thanks again for reviewing! I wanted to get this up yesterday for my birthday, but I didn't have enough time to finish writing it. Things were crazy this week. Anyway, enjoy and please review!! (By the way, reviews would be a nice b-day present!)

Chapter 4

Thursday afternoon, Erica and Debbie were eating lunch together when Whitney walked up and heard their conversation.

"She knows I like him," Erica told Debbie. "And now she's all over him." Erica began imitating Laura. "You shouldn't sleep with the same guy I am. Friends don't do that." Now Debbie spoke for Erica.

"Well, friends don't sleep with a guy their friend likes either."

"Are you talking about Laura and Robbie?" Whitney asked.

"Yeah," both girls responded.

"Didn't we have a discussion establishing that he's hot last night?" Whitney asked.

"Very funny," Erica said dryly. "She knew I liked Robbie."

"Are you sure?"

"I told her!" Erica half yelled. Whitney wasn't sure she believed Erica entirely, and her face showed it.

"Whatever. Take her side. I don't care."

"I'm not taking sides. I just didn't know she told you."

"Well, it's not like you didn't do the same thing when Laura liked that Justin guy," Whitney pointed out.

"That was different. Justin came onto me. I can't help it if he liked me better than her."

"Well, what if Robbie likes Laura," Whitney pointed out.

"He doesn't. And I have the perfect plan to keep it that way."

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That night, Robbie and his friends went to a party to celebrate the end of the semester. Shortly after he got there, he noticed Laura's friends and went over to say hi. Robbie was hoping Laura would be there, but he didn't see her.

"Hey! It's Robbie, right?" the one girl asked. "I'm Erica." Robbie sort of remembered her.

"Yeah, I'm Robbie. Is Laura here?"

"No. She has an exam tomorrow. I bet she'll be sorry she missed this though."

"Why?" Robbie wondered.

"Well, an opportunity to see you and she missed it. Of course she'll be disappointed. Laura can't stop talking about you."

"Really?" Robbie asked, not knowing what to think. He thought Laura was cool, and he had to admit he liked her a little, but he had no idea she liked him so much.

"Yeah. She doesn't admit it, but she has a major crush on you. Her notebooks are covered with Laura and Robbie with hearts and Laura McClanahan," Erica said, while Debbie and Whitney exchanged glances behind her. Robbie's eyes went wide. He couldn't believe she liked him that much. Robbie didn't mean to lead Laura on. She was just a great girl to hook up with at parties and be friends with. Erica noticed his concerned expression. "Oh, don't worry. Laura does this a lot. A guy makes a move and suddenly she thinks they're going to get married."

"I didn't realize she was like that."

"Most guys don't realize it. A lot of girls are like Laura though. I could never be like her though. I have too much fun with guys to be in a serious relationship."

"Sounds like my kind of girl," Phil said, walking up behind Robbie.

"It's too bad you're not my type of guy, cause I definitely am in the mood for some action," Erica said to Phil, but looking at Robbie with a slightly mischievous, flirty expression.

"Touche," Phil said. "How about you girls?" he asked Debbie and Whitney. "Either of you like your friend here?" Both girls rolled their eyes and walked away, mumbling something about going to get drinks. "Maybe not," Phil said and shrugged, walking away, leaving Robbie and Erica standing together.

"Want a drink?" Robbie asked.

"Sure," Erica said, following him to the kitchen.

For the rest of the night, Robbie stayed with Erica and had a great time. In the back of his mind, he thought about Laura a few times, wondering how he had been so wrong about her. Erica was a lot of fun though, and she was very pretty, so Robbie didn't think about Laura too much.

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By the time Laura finished her last exam the next day, she was glad to be done. She was looking forward to going home and spending some time with her family, but more excited to have the entire summer to party and not have to worry about being hungover in class.

"Hey Laura. What did you think of the exam?" a girl named Stephanie from her class asked.

"It was okay," Laura answered.

"Yeah. The essay was a pain to write." Laura nodded in agreement. "Want to go get some lunch?"

"Sure," Laura answered. The girls went to eat lunch and Laura went to her room afterwards. She needed to finish packing because she was leaving campus the next morning.

Whitney, Debbie, and Erica were in her room when she got back.

"Hey girls," Laura said.

"I gotta go," Erica said, getting up and giving Laura a slightly dirty look.

"What's her problem?" Laura asked after Erica shut the door behind her.

"She's pissed off at you."

"Why?"

"Well, I'll get to that. But first . . . what were you doing eating lunch with that Stephanie girl? She's such a dork."

"She asked me to get something to eat with her after the exam."

"She always wants something to eat," Debbie commented with a smirk. "Did you actually get to eat too, or did she eat your food too?"

"No, I ate my food," Laura said. She didn't really understand why Debbie made that comment, because Stephanie was an average weight. Laura would have guessed that they were about the same weight. _I wonder if they think I'm fat too? _She wondered. Whitney broke Laura from her thoughts.

"And she desperately needs a nose job. And an eyebrow waxing," Whitney said. Both girls looked at Laura and waited for her to say something.

"Don't tell me you actually like her?" Debbie said.

"I don't," Laura lied. The truth was, Laura thought Stephanie was very nice, and she at times she wished her friends were more like Stephanie. "I mean, she is a nerd. Studying all the time, and for what? Being a major in media communications is not that difficult. She doesn't need to spend every Saturday night studying." Whitney and Debbie were both satisfied with these comments.

"And have you ever noticed the clothes she wears? Seriously. Get your brother's hand-me-downs out of your closet," Whitney said. Debbie laughed, and Laura faked a laugh as she began cleaning out her drawers. After Debbie left, Laura remembered that Erica was mad at her.

"So why is Erica mad at me?"

"You're trying to steal Robbie."

"What?"

"She said she told you that she liked him before you slept with him."

"I had no idea she liked him," Laura said honestly. "I mean, she sort of mentioned something, but I didn't realize she was serious."

"Well, you need to back off."

"So you're automatically taking her side?" Laura asked offended.

"No. I'm just relaying the message. Erica thinks she has everything cleared up anyway. Her and Robbie had some fun last night. Anyway, I gotta go. See you later," Whitney said, leaving the room. After Whitney left and Laura realized what she meant by 'fun,' Laura was pissed. She didn't care that Robbie slept with another girl, after all they weren't dating or anything, but she did care that Erica purposely slept with Robbie to get back at her.

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Robbie decided to go see Laura before he went out Friday night to apologize. Normally he would avoid the situation and stay clear of girls like Laura, but he liked her more than other girls and felt that he should be completely honest with her. He knocked on her dorm door, and she answered a minute later.

"Hey Robbie," Laura said.

"Hi. Can I talk to you?" he asked.

"Sure. Come on in. Sorry the place is a mess. I'm trying to finish packing."

"That's okay. This will only take a minute. Um, look, I don't know if you got the wrong impression or whatever, but I just thought we were having some fun. I'm not really ready to be involved in a committed relationship right now. Sorry, but I just thought I owed it to you to tell you, because I like you." Robbie paused for a minute. "As a friend," he added. "But you know, if you ever want to hook up and have a little fun, I'm definitely willing." Laura had no idea why he was telling her this, but she went with it.

"Well, that's good to know. I'm not looking for a committed relationship either. So I guess it's good that we're on the same page."

"You're not? Cause Erica told me you were."

"Erica told you I wanted a committed relationship?"

"Yeah."

"Of course she did," Laura said, rolling her eyes.

"So you don't?" Robbie asked.

"No. Laura Campbell and serious relationship can't be used in the same sentence."

"Well that's good to know."

"Yeah. And I think I'm going to have to take you up on that offer you made before," Laura said with a smile. It took Robbie a minute to remember what offer he had made, and when he realized it, he smiled.

"Now?"

"Whenever," Laura said with a shrug.

"Okay, but only if you'll let me buy you dinner."

"Are you asking me out on a date?"

"Yeah. But of course, it won't be a date leading to a serious relationship, but just as a not so serious relationship . . . if that makes any sense. Cause, it would be nice to get to know you a little better." Laura smiled.

"I'd like that."

Robbie felt really good about the conversation he had with Laura. He really liked where their relationship stood, and he hoped she felt just as good about things between them.


	5. Chapter 5

meadow567: She does need new friends, lol. But they're a lot like her, which is why she doesn't have nicer friends. She's mean too, which you'll see more of soon. Thanks for reviewing!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, they are mean. And you'll see why she isn't better friends with Stephanie in a few chapters. Thanks for the reivew!

justlikewedo: Thanks for the b-day wish. I had a great birthday. There will definitely be more drama coming up, but none caused by Erica. Enjoy the chapter and thanks for the review.

A/N: Enjoy the chapter guys! I know I've been updating every Friday since I've started posting the story, but there won't be an update next Friday. My spring break is next week and I'm going to Florida. I'm actually leaving tonight and getting back the 18th, so I don't know when the next chapter will be up. I sort of have it planned out though, and there's gonna be drama!! Anyway, please review and I'll get another chapter up as soon as I can when I get home.

Chapter 5

As the summer went by, Robbie and Laura spent some time together, and developed a weird type of relationship, because unlike most new couples, they didn't want to spend all of their time together. Laura seemed to spend more time shopping and partying with her friends, and Robbie spent more time playing hockey with his friends, than they spent with each other.

They did go out on a few dates at first, which had been awkward, like most usually were, with them trying to break awkward silences by talking about college majors, their family, and other 'getting to know you' subjects. There was a mutual understanding between them however, that Robbie and Laura both clearly wanted the physical benefits of a relationship. It became almost as if they weren't dating, but were rather friends with benefits. No one seemed to know where their relationship stood, including them, but that didn't really bother them either.

On a hot July afternoon, Robbie, Christoff, Jannie, and Rammer decided to go to beach to swim and hang out. Since they all lived within twenty minutes of each other, they were able to spend a lot of time together even when they weren't at school and playing hockey. That day they went to Golden Lake, which was ten minutes from Robbie's house, and spent most of their time swimming, throwing a football around, and trying to impress the girls that were tanning nearby.

"They don't seem to be too interested in us guys," Robbie pointed out.

"You shouldn't care too much, considering you have a girlfriend," said Rammer.

"Wait. Is Laura your girlfriend?" asked Jannie. "I can't really tell."

"Yeah, she is. But we're not exclusive. I could hook up with someone else and so could she."

"Are you sure she understands that?" asked Christoff. "None of the girls I've dated would go for that."

"Laura's different. She doesn't want anything too serious. We both just want a little fun."

"Okay. Whatever you say, man. But I don't think you guys can really define yourselves as a couple."

"Where does Laura live?" Rammer asked, sort of randomly, staring at something in the distance.

"In Arden Hills," Robbie responded.

"Like an hour from here, right?" Rammer asked.

"Yeah, almost. Which is another reason we don't see each other too much."

"Seriously Mac, if you were really in a relationship, you guys wouldn't mind the drive to see each other," Jannie said. "You would have no problem-" Rammer cut Verchota off.

"Well, if Laura won't drive an hour to see you, but she'll come here for the beach, I guess you're not really a couple."

"What?" Robbie asked, confused.

"Turn around," Rammer said. Robbie turned around along with Jannie, looking in the general direction that Rammer was looking in before. "Isn't that Laura?"

"Yeah, it is," Robbie said, not sounding too surprised to see her. His friends gave him weird looks.

"Don't you think it's weird that she didn't tell you she was going to be around here today, Mac?" asked Christoff.

"We don't have to know where each other are at all times."

"Well, aren't you gonna go say hi?" asked Jannie.

"Will that make you guys happy?" Robbie asked, not waiting for an answer, but instead walking over to where Laura was standing. His three friends followed close behind.

"Hey Laur."

"Hey Robbie," she said happily. "What's going on?"

"Just enjoying the beautiful weather."

"Me too. Working on my tan a bit."

"I'll have to check out those tan lines later," he said with a smile, and also quiet enough so all of their friends wouldn't hear it. Laura smiled back, acknowledging his comment. Laura then introduced the guys to the girls she was with, her older sister, Ashley, and Ashley's friend.

The guys and girls talked and hung out for a while before Robbie and his friends went back to playing football, and Laura laid out to tan. The guys couldn't believe Robbie and Laura didn't want to spend more time together.

"We each like doing our own thing," Robbie explained. "We're not one of those serious couples that has to be together all of the time. This is just casual."

"Well, I can guarantee that with the attitude you both have concerning the relationship, it won't last long at all. Maybe a month or two, if you're lucky," Jannie said.

"Whatever happens, happens. If we decide to stop seeing each other, it's fine. Neither one of us will be upset, and which makes this type of relationship sometimes for the best anyway."

For the remainder of summer, Robbie and Laura continued dating casually, and often saw each other just because they needed, or wanted, something physical. Until Senior year began, it was easy because they lived far enough apart to only see each other once a week, but once they moved back into the dorms, Robbie and Laura began seeing each daily and it was hard to keep their relationship as casual.

The first weekend of the semester, there was a huge party, celebrating the football team's season opening win. Laura had gone with Whitney, Erica, and Debbie. It seemed that Erica had gotten over the Robbie thing, so things were okay between them again.

"Laura, see that guy?" Whitney asked, looking in the direction of some football players. "He was totally checking you out when we walked in."

"Really?" Laura said, happily surprised.

"Yeah. Why don't you go over there and talk to him?"

"Okay," Laura said, starting to walk away from her friends. Debbie stopped her.

"Doesn't he have a girlfriend?"

"How would I know," Laura responded.

"Yeah, he does. I think they're really serious. Like practically ready to get engaged," Erica said.

"Well, then I guess it sucks to be the other girl," Laura said, uncaring and with a smile.

"I'm not trying to stop you or anything," said Debbie. "I just wanted you to know so if someone starts sending you death threats, you'll know why," she half joked.

"Thanks," Laura said.

"Wait, aren't you dating Robbie?" Erica asked.

"Yeah, so?" Erica gave her a questioning look.

"I don't care, I'm pretty much over him anyway," Erica assured her. "But how serious are you guys?"

"We're not serious or exclusive. I can hook up with some random football player at a party. It won't be anything more than a one night thing. Besides, all summer, Robbie was the only person I've slept with, and I need to spice things up."

"Have fun," Whitney said, flashing her friend a smile.

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Originally, Robbie wasn't going to go to the party, but he changed his mind at the last minute. He knew Laura was going with her friends, so he began looking for her as soon as he got there.

"Are you lookin' for your girlfriend?" Verchota asked in a sing song voice.

"Yes."

"I thought things were casual."

"They are. But I always have fun with her at parties."

"Isn't that her with the football player over there?"

"I think it is," Rammer added. "And it looks like someone's getting pretty cosy."

"What the hell is she doing?" Robbie asked angrily.

"It looks like she's trying to get some," Verchota stated obviously.

"Yeah, I can see that, you idiot. But why?"

"Why do you care? If things are so 'casual' it shouldn't matter," Christoff said.

"We always hook up at parties."

"She thought you weren't coming."

"Well, I'm going to go over there now." As Robbie began walking over, Erica walked in front of him. "Move Erica. I'm in no mood."

"I just wanted to say hi."

"I don't like you okay. Get that through your head."

"Fine," Erica said coldly. "But just know that you're missing out on something amazing."

"Whatever," Robbie said, walking over to Laura. "Hey Laur," he said casually, trying to not sound upset.

"Hi Robbie," Laura said, and went back to focusing on the guy she was with. Robbie hoped for something more than a 'hi' and being ignored in response, so he tried something else.

"Are you having fun?"

"Yeah," she said, a little annoyed at being bothered. Robbie noticed the football player was annoyed too.

"Do you want something, man?" he asked. Robbie was about to answer but changed his response based on the look on Laura's face. She looked satisfied that the football player was trying to get Robbie to leave them alone.

"Nah, forget it," Robbie said, walking away. As he headed back towards his friends, he heard Laura say, "Now where were we?"

Not being in the mood to party anymore, Robbie went back to his room, alone. For the rest o the night, his thoughts drifted to Laura and what she was doing and whether she was having fun. Finally, he decided that they had to talk about their relationship. Robbie didn't think he wanted exclusivity, but he was starting to rethink that idea. Just because she would let any guy in her pants, did mean Robbie wanted to do the same with anyone. He liked Laura and even if they wanted to avoid a serious relationship, he at least wanted her to himself. Robbie hoped that she would feel the same way, but after seeing her content with someone else earlier that night, he wasn't so sure.


	6. Chapter 6

meadow567: Sorry this took two weeks to get up, but thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoy!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, Robbie was being slightly immature about the football player thing. Thanks for the review and I hope you like this chapter!

justlikewedo: Thanks for the review. Glad you liked it. Things will be cleared up, but new situations will arise, lol. And, Florida was lots of fun, it was nice and warm. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter too.

A/N: I'm back! Sorry this took so long to get up. I actually got home on Sunday, I've been so busy. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter and please review! Reviews make me really happy. Also, I think there's only going to be two more chapters before the tryouts. So the Boston guys and more of the team will be around soon!

Chapter 6:

The next Monday, Laura got up and went to class, hoping to see Robbie at lunch. It seemed like he had been avoiding her, but she didn't know why. If anyone should have been mad, Laura thought it should have been her. After all, Robbie kept trying to interrupt her and Kevin at the party. She was over it, and thought Robbie should be too. He made it pretty clear that their relationship was completely casual.

She sat down in her Calc class and was surprised when another girl sat down next to her. The girl kept looking at Laura, but not saying anything. Finally, Laura got really annoyed.

"What the hell do you want?"

"I'm Amy." Laura just raised her eyebrows, silently questioning why she should care. "Do you know a Kevin Duncan?"

"No."

"I think you do. I heard you were with him at a party last weekend."

"Oh, Kevin the football player?"

"Yeah."

"That was a fun night."

"Well, just to let you know, Kevin's my boyfriend," Amy said with an attitude.

"That's nice."

"That's all you have to say for yourself?"

"What do you want me to say?"

"You slept with my boyfriend!"

"Well, it wasn't rape. Your boyfriend had a choice. He could have said no."

"He wouldn't cheat on me," Amy said completely assured. Laura rolled her eyes.

"Have you looked in a mirror lately?" she said nastily. "I'm surprised he'd even go out with you in the first place. Unless you're easy or something." Amy's expression turned cold and Laura continued. "I have a few suggestions for you though. First, skip two meals a day. Second, don't wear your glasses. And third, try washing your hair more than once a week." Amy looked like she was about to cry and quickly picked up her books and left before Laura could say anything else.

After class, Laura went to the student union to try to find Robbie. He was sitting alone, and already eating lunch.

"Hey," she said with a smile. "You didn't wait for me?"

"I didn't know if you'd show up. I thought maybe you had someone better to eat with."

"Robbie, don't do this. I was just having fun. We're not exclusive."

"Well, lately things have been seeming to be heading in that direction. Until the other night, we've been pretty exclusive even though we haven't admitted it."

"I'm sorry. I was unaware that exclusivity could be implied like that," Laura said and paused for a second before restating her original thoughts. "We're not exclusive."

"Well maybe we should be," Robbie said with an edge.

"I thought you wanted things casual."

"I do, but that doesn't mean I want to sleep with a lot of different girls. Not if I'm dating you at least." Neither really knew what to say from there, so they dropped the subject.

"I'm going to get lunch," Laura said, getting up. A few minutes later, she came back with a fruit salad, pretzels, and water.

"Is there a food shortage?" Robbie asked, seeing her small lunch.

"No." Robbie gave her a look asking why she wasn't eating more. "I'm not that hungry."

"If you get much thinner, we won't need to worry about the being exclusive thing, cause I won't even be attracted to you anymore," he said joking. Laura didn't laugh in response though.

"What's wrong with being thin?"

"Nothing. But just to let you know, your friends are idiots."

"What?" Laura asked, surprised at the change in subject.

"I heard them talking last week, and I think you might have too." Laura knew what Robbie was talking about, but she pretended to not have a clue. "Come on Laura, I know you know. After we went out for ice cream last week, I heard what they were saying about dieting and that you should too."

"Well, they had a good point. I'm just trying to eat healthy."

"But you've been eating the same thing for the past week. I haven't seen you eat one piece of chocolate in a week and I know how much you love chocolate. I'm just saying that I don't want you to get sick from not eating enough."

"Can we get back on the being exclusive topic?" Laura asked.

"Only if you eat my chocolate chip cookie," Robbie said, handing her the cookie that was on his tray.

"Okay fine," Laura said, eating the cookie just to get him off her back. She did have to admit, it tasted really good.

After having a talk Robbie and Laura mutually decided to be exclusive. They still wanted to keep things casual, but they both agreed that having a little more serious relationship wouldn't hurt.

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Over the next few weeks, Robbie began playing hockey more and more. The season was starting soon, and practices were becoming increasingly intense. He still seemed to see Laura just as much, and if not more, than he had before. It could have been because since they became exclusive, she had become almost clingy. It wasn't that Robbie exactly minded, because he enjoyed the "I can't keep my hands off you" stage, but he hoped it was just that - a stage. Once the games started, Robbie knew constantly being with Laura would be a problem.

Luckily for Robbie, he was right about being with Laura all the time, a stage. She got a job with the on campus radio station, and Robbie had games at least three times a week so they led their separate lives and mainly spent time together on weekends. Laura's birthday was December 3, and it happened to be on the day of an away game. Since the team left early that morning, Robbie didn't get to see her that day so he called her after the game to wish her a happy birthday.

"Sorry I couldn't take you out for dinner or even give you your present yet," Robbie said, near the end of their conversation.

"Don't worry about it. You'll see me tomorrow."

"But I'm excited to give you your present. I think you'll really like it."

"I better," Laura joked. "Especially after having to wait an extra day." Laura knew Robbie felt a little bad about not seeing her on her birthday, so she joked around to make him feel even more guilty.

"Great, now I'll have to do something extra special too, to go along with the present."

"Well, I can think of several ways you can make it up to me," she said suggestively.

"Oh I will. And I'll make it good," Robbie said seriously.

"Seriously though, I'm sure just the present will be good enough. Even if you don't do something extra special, I still love you." As soon as the words came out of her mouth, Laura regretted it. She hadn't meant to say, and she hoped Robbie didn't notice. From the silence on the other end, she was pretty sure he had.

"Well, I gotta go. See you sometime tomorrow," he said, and quickly hung up the phone. Robbie was lost in his thoughts when Verchota and Jannie walked up behind him.

"Hey man. Call your girlfriend?" Jannie asked.

"Yeah."

"Are you okay?" Verchota asked, sensing something was wrong.

"He's just mad he won't get any on his girl's birthday," Jannie teased. Robbie silently began walking away. "Hey, wait!" Jannie said, and tried to catch up to him. "What's wrong, Mac?"

"She just dropped the L-bomb."

"She said she loves you?!" Verchota asked. "Wow, you're in deep," he said, sounding sympathetic.

"I had no idea she felt that strongly. That was literally the last thing I expected out of her mouth."

"Don't worry about it. Just talk to her when we get back. Maybe it was just a misunderstanding," Jannie offered.

"How do you misunderstand the 'L' word?" Verchota asked.

Jannie sent him a look and mouthed "You're not helping."

Robbie sighed loudly and walked back into the locker room.

"You can just break up with her," Verchota said.

"But I like her. I'm just not in love with her."

"So tell her that she'll understand."

"Girls don't understand that though. If they love you and you don't love them, they think you'll never love them and they freak out."

"Not all girls, Mac," said Jannie. "Just talk to her." Robbie nodded but didn't really know what he would do. He had no idea how to talk to her about it. Robbie figured he would eventually though.

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After a week of avoiding Laura, Robbie finally talked to her, though not by choice. She cornered him and wouldn't let him leave until he listened to her. Robbie found out that Laura let the 'I love you' slip out by accident, and she assured him that she didn't really mean it. Robbie was relieved and things were okay between them again.

Over the next month, Robbie got to know Laura a lot better. They talked a lot more, and for the first time, their relationship seemed real and they had an emotional connection rather than just physical. Robbie learned just how much fun Laura could be. She loved sports and was extremely competitive, sometimes Robbie thought she was a little too competitive. He also met her family over the winter break and now realized that Laura was a totally different person around her family. One would have never guessed that she was a somewhat slutty, party girl from the way she acted around her parents and siblings.

Robbie also learned some things about Laura that he really didn't like. Around guys, Laura was friendly and outgoing. She had a bubbly personality and always seemed happy. When she was with girls though, her dark side came out. Robbie realized how mean Laura actually was to other girls. If Laura wasn't friends with them, or didn't like them, Robbie noticed she would purposely make nasty comments. Whenever Robbie mentioned this to Laura though, she would get a little mad at him and become defensive. Robbie figured it was just something he would have to deal with and tried to ignore it.

In late March, Robbie finally realized just how strong his feelings for Laura were becoming. One night, they were watching a movie on TV and cuddling on Robbie's bed, and Robbie suddenly wrapped his arms tighter around Laura, causing her to turn around and face him with a smile.

Robbie rubbed his hand on her cheek and smiled back. "I have a little something for you," he said. Robbie reached into the drawer of his nightstand and pulled out a little box.

"What's this for?" she asked.

"Just because I love you."

Laura opened it to find a beautiful colatta ring. She pulled it out of the box and read the inscription, which said "I'll love you forever." Robbie waited for her to say something, but she didn't. Laura pulled away from him and avoided eye contact.

"Don't you like it?"

"Robbie . . . it's beautiful. But . . . " she sighed. "I can't take this."

"Why?" Robbie asked, sounding hurt.

"I just can't okay!"

"Laura, I love you," Robbie said, still trying to understand why she wouldn't take it.

"Look, I . . . I just . . . I don't think we should see each other anymore," Laura said, and threw the box on the bed and ran out of the room. Robbie just sat on the bed, devastated. He thought things had been going so well, and he couldn't understand why Laura was so upset.

Meanwhile, Laura went back to her room and burst into tears when she was finally behind her closed door. She was happy that Whitney wasn't in the room, because she wanted to be alone.

Laura wished Robbie hadn't given her the ring. Things were going so well before that, but he ruined it. _Who am I kidding? _she thought. _I'm the idiot. I ruined it._ The truth was, she loved the ring. It was the inscription that scared her. I'll love you forever. Forever was such a big word for Laura, especially when it was referring to a guy. She loved Robbie, but forever made things too serious and committed. Laura was scared of messing things up and whenever things became too hard to deal with, she ran away from the problem because it was easier than dealing with things.

By the next morning, Laura was ready to kick herself for being so stupid. She couldn't believe she broke up with Robbie instead of talking to him about it. Laura decided to apologize for the way she acted and talk about it with him. When she got to his room though, his friend Phil answered the door.

"Hey Phil. Is Robbie here?"

"Yeah, but he doesn't fell like talking."

"I really need to see him."

"Sorry," Verchota replied.

After a few minutes of pleading with Phil, Laura realized she wasn't getting anywhere and left.

"You should know that Laura was really insistent on seeing you," Verchota told Robbie.

"I don't give a shit what she wants." Robbie went from being upset the night before to being angry and bitter that morning. He told Verchota that he was sick of her games. First she didn't want anything serious. Then she did and said 'I love you,'even if it was accidental. Next, Laura agreed to slowly becoming serious and they mutually said they loved each other on Valentine's Day. Then Robbie bought a nice ring, which was pretty expensive, and she broke up with him. The truth was, Robbie was sick and tired of Laura playing games with his mind. He just wanted her to be honest about how she really felt. _Well, it's too late now, _Robbie thought. _Cause I'm not doing that anymore._


	7. Chapter 7

meadow567: I'm glad you like Laura so far. Yeah, her friends aren't exactly the nicest people, and you'll see why she thinks she's just like them, but then she'll realize she's not really like them, lol. Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter and thanks for the review!

NellieBly413672: Thanks, and I couldn't keep you liking her forever. Her bitchy side had to come out eventually, lol. Hope you enjoy this chapter too!

Xcapitalbarbie90: Yeah, I'll fix it . . . but don't get too excited, cause I'll mess it up again, lol. Remember from Glory Days that they're on again off again!! Glad you like the story so far and thanks for the review!

A/N: This is the last chapter before the tryouts and stuff, so more team stuff will be coming up. Hope you guys enjoy the chapter. It's almost all Robbie and Laura, but it explains a couple things that will be important later. Anyway, when you're done reading, you know what to do. Click that little button and review!

Chapter 7

For the next two months, Laura and Robbie didn't talk at all. If they even saw each other, Robbie completely avoided her. Laura still felt bad about breaking up with him, and at first hoped to get back together. After two weeks of Robbie ignoring her however, she got tired of chasing him and gave up. By the end of the college hockey season, she was completely over the break up, or so she thought.

Laura had been casually dating a few guys in the recent weeks and having the time of her life. One thing she forgot while dating Robbie was how much fun it was to have no strings attached and be single. Slightly disappointed that each of the three guys she was currently seeing weren't able to go out Saturday night, Laura opted to go to a party with Whitney. Minutes after they arrived, Whitney pointed out that Robbie was there.

"Why should I care?" asked Laura. "Even if I try to be friendly, he'll just avoid or ignore me."

"You do have to admit he looks hot tonight though."

"He always looks hot, Whit," Laura said.

"Let's just go over and say hi," Whitney suggested.

"No," Laura said firmly.

"Come on," Whitney wined.

As Laura said no again, Robbie looked in their general direction and locked eyes with Laura. After holding her gaze for a minute, Robbie turned away.

"What was that?" Whitney asked, noticing the eye contact.

"Nothing." Whitney began walking away, clearly to talk to Robbie and his friends. Before Laura could stop her, she was already saying hi.

Robbie did his best to ignore Laura and just talk to Whitney when she came over. The truth was, Robbie was almost afraid to talk to Laura again. He knew seeing her would bring back the feelings he was just getting over. With his friends talking to both girls though, and Laura talking to them as well, it was difficult to pretend Laura wasn't there.

Robbie wasn't exactly sure how it happened, but the next thing he knew, his friends left and he was standing alone with Laura.

"Robbie, can we talk?"

"I don't really have much to say," he replied.

"Well I do," Laura said. "Please?" Seeing the pleading look on Laura's face, he caved and agreed.

"Sure. Just let me get another drink first. I might need it. Then let's go somewhere where it's a little quieter." Robbie got another drink for himself and Laura. He was already buzzed, but now that he had to talk to Laura, he wanted to get completely wasted. At that point, Robbie didn't think he would want to remember that night the next morning because he didn't think much good would come of talking to her.

After finding an empty room, Laura sat next to Robbie on the bed and began apologizing for everything. Right away, he knew Laura was drunk, because she would have never been that apologetic otherwise. Nonetheless, he listened and could tell she meant what she was saying. Near the end of their conversation, Robbie completely forgot about being mad at her. Once he couldn't resist the urge to kiss her anymore, he leaned in and was happy when she hungrily kissed him back. As she kissed him, Laura was reminded of the sparks she felt when kissing Robbie, and forgot the benefits of being unattached she had thought about just days before.

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The next morning, Robbie woke up confused. He knew what went on last night could have meant they were getting back together, but with Laura, nothing like that was ever clear. When she woke up, Robbie decided to ask where things stood.

"What are we?" Robbie asked, practically before she had a chance to open her eyes all the way.

"Huh?" she replied groggily.

"Well, we talked last night, and now we're here, but are we together or was last night just to have some fun?"

"I just woke up," Laura said, without answering the question.

"That's what I thought," Robbie said, thinking Laura purposely avoided answering, and he then began to climb out of bed.

"Wait, Robbie," Laura started. "I don't mean to sound like I don't want to get back together, but can we just talk about this first?"

"We talked last night," Robbie reminded her.

"No, I talked. Then we kissed. Do you really need a reminder about the rest of the night too?" she asked sarcastically. "Let's go get breakfast and decide mutually exactly where things stand."

"Okay," Robbie agreed, though he didn't have high hopes on getting back together.

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Two months later . . .

Since Laura and Robbie's talk two months before, they started dating again. This time, it seemed to be for good. They had never gotten along better, and Laura was being a lot more open with Robbie, and seemed into the idea of a little more serious and committed relationship.

Lately Robbie's friends had all been talking about their post graduation plans. A lot of the guys were hoping to be drafted by hockey teams, and those that already were drafted hoped to be called to play. Robbie had been a third round draft pick the summer before, and hoped that he would be able to begin playing with the team during the summer training camp. The only potential problem was that he was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres, and Buffalo was far away from St. Paul. He decided not to mention anything to Laura though, because he didn't want to cause problems if it wouldn't even be a problem. There was no guarantee Buffalo wanted him to play.

Days before graduation, in late April, Robbie got a phone call that made things slightly complicated. The Sabres General Manager called and asked Robbie to sign a contract with the Sabres. It was pretty decent contract, and one that Robbie wouldn't turn down, but that meant telling Laura he was leaving for Buffalo. In the back of his mind, Robbie hoped Laura would join him in Buffalo, but he thought his chances of that were pretty slim. The GM explained that Robbie had three weeks to decide whether he would start his NHL career that season.

"Hey Laura, there's something I need to tell you," Robbie started one night when they were in his dorm room.

"What is it?" she asked, reading from his expression that whatever it was, was serious.

"You know how good my hockey career has been so far, right?"

"Yeah. You're amazing."

"Well, playing in the NHL has been my dream since I started playing."

"Yeah. But unfortunately, not everyone makes it," Laura said.

"But some guys do," Robbie said, smiling.

"Did you get drafted?!" Laura asked, excited for him.

"Yeah. Well, actually, I was drafted last year, but they just called me now to play this upcoming season."

"That's great, Robbie!" Laura said, hugging him. "My boyfriend's going to be an NHL star," she said excitedly.

"Yeah, about that," Robbie said, remembering why he was serious before. "The Stars didn't draft me."

"Who did?" Laura asked. She knew the Stars were Minnesota's NHL team. If Robbie didn't get drafted by them, then he was obviously moving.

"Buffalo."

"What?" Laura said, sounding upset.

"I'm sorry, but-"

"Does that mean you're going to Buffalo?"

"Well, yeah. This is the opportunity of a lifetime."

"Yeah, I know," Laura said, sounding a little sad. "When do you have to leave?"

"In a month." She nodded.

"So you were drafted last year?" she asked, sounding a little upset again to Robbie.

"Yeah."

"And you didn't tell me before we got together that you might be leaving?"

"Well, it was only a possibility so I didn't want to tell you."

"I wish you would have. I wouldn't have gotten so attached to you."

"We can still make things work."

"Yeah right. Robbie, I have issues with commitment, you know that. How the hell do you think I can be committed to someone miles away?"

"Laura, we can do this."

"I don't think so, Robbie. We'll never make it. You're just trying to fight the inevitable." Robbie was silent for a minute, trying to let Laura's words sink in. He knew she was probably right. But he didn't understand why they couldn't try.

"You can come to Buffalo with me," Robbie suggested seriously, but it only seemed to make things worse with Laura becoming even more mad.

"Buffalo? Yeah right. Why would I want to go to Buffalo? My life is here. And do you know how cold it is in Buffalo?" She said nastily.

"It's cold here, Laura," Robbie said, thinking her excuse was stupid.

"Well I'm not leaving."

"Fine. Don't. It was just a suggestion."

"A bad one," she said, standing up.

"Where are you going?"

"To my room."

"Why? Stay here."

"Robbie, we're done after graduation. You're leaving. Why keep this going now?"

"Because, we can still have fun while it lasts," Robbie said. He was actually hoping Laura would come around and change her mind about trying to make a long distance relationship work. Better yet, he hoped she would change her mind and move with him.

"I'm not doing this anymore, Robbie. We can't keep this up. At least, I can't. I'm sorry. I have to go," Laura said, leaving the room and slamming the door behind her. It wasn't that Laura wasn't happy for Robbie, because she was. Laura just thought things were going really well, and for the first time, she was actually in love. Now Robbie was going hundreds of miles away and Laura knew she couldn't deal with it.


	8. Chapter 8

meadow567: Well, I don't want to tell you and ruin it, so you're going to have to read to find out! Thanks for reviewing.

NellieBly413672: Glad you like the drama. There's more coming up where that came from! Thanks for the review.

Neonbible: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapters. Thanks for reviewing.

A/N: Sorry, I know this is a short and probably somewhat boring chapter, but it will get exciting again soon. I'm also sorry I couldn't get this up sooner, but I went away for the weekend and didn't get chance to finish it before. Next one should be up this weekend, and it will be a more exciting chapter.

Chapter 8:

On a warm, sunny, morning in the beginning of July, Robbie was walking into an ice rink in Colorado to tryout for the U.S. Olympic hockey team. He was excited to play, but a little concerned over whether he was doing the right thing. Robbie wanted to play a little more for Coach Brooks, but he was giving up a nice paycheck in the NHL.

Shortly after he received the call from the Sabres General Manager to play in Buffalo, Robbie received a letter from the USOC, asking him to bypass the NHL offer for one year and play on the Olympic team. Although Robbie never imagined an Olympic spot in life, it was a dream come true. He decided that he couldn't pass up the opportunity and bought a plane ticket to Colorado Springs for tryouts.

It helped that a handful of friends were also trying out for the team. Verchota, Buzz, Jannie, and Rammer were all trying out, along with a few other guys from the U. Robbie found some of his friends right away, but he was amazed at how crowded it was. He had no idea that many guys would be there to tryout. At least Herb was coaching the team though, because that meant that Robbie might have a good chance on making it. After all, Herb knew how Robbie played after being his coach for four years.

Once the guys were let off the ice for the day, Robbie got his stuff together and had a seat in the stands. There was a rumor that Herb already picked the team, but Robbie had also heard that Herb just wanted to talk to them.

Looking around at the other guys sitting near him, Robbie noticed a few familiar faces. He met a few guys that had played for UMD and he also met Mike Eruzione, a hockey player from Boston University. There was a longstanding rivalry between Boston and Minnesota, but Rizzo seemed all right. Robbie hoped the other guys would get over it too. The way he saw it, it was three years ago. They didn't need to be crying over the loss still.

After Craig Patrick announced twenty-six names of guys on the team, they got thick packets with questions to answer and they were dismissed. Robbie heard that most of the guys were going to celebrate at a local bar, including the Boston boys.

Robbie got there after most of his friends were already there. He walked in with Mark Johnson and noticed most of the guys from Minnesota seeming to be having a lot of fun. Robbie also saw Rizzo, O'Callahan, and a few other guys he didn't know sitting away from them at a table.

After waving to Rizzo, Robbie was satisfied with the look OC gave his friend. He had hoped to piss OC off a bit. Especially after what he heard in the locker room after tryouts. Someone, presumably a Bostonian, made a comment to OC about Minnesotans and how they would have to live in hickville for the next several months. After a few other comments with it, Robbie knew the guys, OC especially, still held grudges against him. Robbie did remember checking him, but didn't understand why it was such a big deal after three years.

"Mac, what are you drinking?" Verchota asked him.

"Whatever. As long as it's beer, and it can get me drunk, I don't care what kind."

Robbie talked to a few guys he had met earlier that day and they started talking about their college hockey careers.

"I've heard that you're pretty good, Mac. The MDP award a few times?" Mark said and Robbie laughed. Mark was referring to the times he got most determined player at the U.

"So you've heard about that already? How many other people have you told Verchota?" Robbie asked, just as Verchota was walking back over to the group.

"During story time earlier. You missed the reminiscing we all did earlier. Actually, it was more making fun of teammates."

"Including me, who wasn't even here yet."

"That's what you get for showing up late," Verchota said.

"Well I was busy," replied Robbie.

"If you weren't getting laid, it's not a good enough excuse." The guys laughed and Robbie just mumbled something under his breath.

The guys had a good time celebrating making the team that night. By the end of the night, even the Boston guys were hanging out with them. Actually, it was only Rizzo after the other guys left, but it was a start.

Early the next morning, Robbie decided to call the airline and try to move his flight up a few days. Since tryouts were supposed to be for a week, he wasn't going to fly home until Friday afternoon, but since the team was already picked, he had the rest of the week off. Luckily, he was able to change the flight to later that morning.

When Robbie got home, his mom was the only one there, but she wasn't very excited to see him at first.

"Hi Mom," Robbie called as he walked in the door.

"Robbie? Is that you?"

"Yeah," he said as he dumped his hockey bag in the doorway. His mom walked out of the kitchen and just looked at him.

"You're home early," she finally said. Robbie now knew why she wasn't more enthusiastic about his arrival. She probably thought he was cut.

"Yeah, Herb decided that one day of tryouts was all he really needed."

"For everyone?"

"Yep. And I made it," Robbie said, his face breaking into a smile.

"Congratulations!" his mom said happily, running over to hug him. "I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks. Now I have a week off because practices don't start until next Monday."

"Good. Since you're going to be home, you can help around the house," she said, half joking.

"What?" Robbie said in disbelief. "Make the twins help. They're home too," Robbie said, referring to his 19-year-old twin siblings.

"They both have jobs."

"Well, I'm about to. Sort of."

"Yeah, sort of. If I remember correctly, you're not getting paid to play on the Olympic team."

"The pay will come in the glory mom."

"I'm sure it will. But, go put your things away and come help me in the kitchen." Robbie rolled his eyes when his mother turned away, but did as he was told. _One of the best parts of playing on this team is that I'll be living in the dorms again, _Robbie thought. After taking his hockey bag to his room, Robbie came downstairs to see what his mom needed help with. He was surprised to see his mom sitting at the table with a glass of milk and plate of cookies in front of her.

"Sit down and help me eat these cookies. I just made them and they're still hot." Robbie smiled, and silently thanked God for not really having to help his mother. Almost reading his thoughts, she said, "I take it next time, you'll think before complaining about helping me right?"

"Definitely," he responded, with his mouth already full. Five minutes later, Robbie heard the front door open and he knew it was his brother and sister immediately.

"No, you can't take the car tomorrow. I need it to go to the beach."

"So, you had it today. I couldn't even drive myself to work. I had to let my baby sister drive me."

"Baby sister? I'm two minutes younger than you, Noah."

"You're still the baby."

Robbie heard the two continue arguing like five year olds until they walked in the kitchen and saw the cookies.

"Cookies!" they both said, running over to the table.

"I'm starving," said Noah.

"Thanks mom," Natalie said.

"Wait, what are you doing here?" Noah asked, finally realizing Robbie was home.

"I live here," he responded. "Though only for another week, thank God. You two arguing are worse than five year olds."

"Did you make it?" Natalie asked.

"Yep."

"That's awesome," she said, giving Robbie a hug.

"Yeah, that's great," added Noah.

That night, the McClanahan's all went out for dinner to celebrate Robbie making the team. His family was clearly excited which made Robbie that much more excited to start practicing and play in the Olympics.

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A week later, Robbie was excited to finally start practicing. Monday morning, the guys on the team moved into the dorms and had their first practice. Robbie was rooming with Mark Johnson. Bah and Verchota were in the room next to them, and Rizzo and, unfortunately for Robbie, OC were across the hall. Robbie avoided OC that morning, not wanting to make things any worse than they already were. Robbie was hoping with time he would just forget about '76.

Near the end of practice, the guys were working on plays and it was Robbie's turn on the ice. He was skating down the ice when he got hit hard and knocked down. At first, he didn't even realize who hit him, but Robbie wasn't happy, because it was cheap. As he started getting up, he had realized OC hit him from the comments made. _He's not getting away with that, _thought Robbie as he got up and charged OC. After a minute of trying to beat the crap out of OC, they finally stopped. Herb made a few comments about the fight and Robbie just hoped OC got the satisfaction or whatever it was that he wanted. Robbie decided he wouldn't give OC any more reasons to kill him, and he would try to be friendly or maybe just ignore OC for the time being.


	9. Chapter 9

meadow567: Thanks for the review and I'm glad you liked it. Enjoy the chapter! 

NellieBly413672: Yum, cookies . . . now I want some! Maybe my mom will bake me some. Or, maybe not, lol. I'm glad you liked the chapter and I hope you enjoy this one!

Neonbible: Thanks for the review, and I hope you enjoy the chapter. 

A/N: Thanks again to everyone who reviewed. This would have been up yesterday, but the site wouldn't let me post it! This morning, the site still wasn't working, so finally, I looked through the forums and found a way to get around the uploading error. Now I'm just hoping the font and text all turned out okay, cause I just copied and pasted it. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the chapter. Please review, cause getting reviews makes my day!

Chapter 9:

The night after OC and Robbie's fight, Robbie had gone out with some of the guys. It wasn't much of a surprise that OC didn't join them, because he was trying to keep up his 'I don't like Mac' reputation. Rizzo mentioned that OC was on the phone with his girlfriend when they left, but Robbie wasn't so sure he believed him. If Robbie had been on the phone with his girlfriend, he would have hung up if he really wanted to go out with the guys. _Maybe that's part of the reason I don't have a girlfriend, _Robbie thought.

That night, the guys decided to go to a Minnesota baseball game. Within five minutes of getting to the stadium and finding their seats, Verchota already had his eyes on a girl.

"Guys, check out those girls about three rows down. They're hot."

"Yeah they are," said Bah in agreement, tossing some popcorn in his mouth.

"Which one do you want?"

"The one on the left."

"Good, cause I want the one on the right," said Verchota.

"You guys are too much," said Rizzo.

"The thing is, it's all talk," said Robbie. "They never actually get the girl. Well, at least not Verchota. I can't really speak for Bah."

"Well, you don't have a girlfriend either, Mac."

"But I don't fantasize over every girl that's between the ages of 16 and 23."

While the guys were talking about the girls sitting a few rows in front of them, a few other girls, sitting behind them, were talking about the guys. Finally, Rizzo happened to notice.

"Hey guys, don't look now, but I think the girls back there are checking us out."

"Where?" said Verchota loudly, while turning around anyway. Rizzo turned a little red as Bah began laughing, and the girls giggled.

"I thought we came to watch the game," said Mark, who hadn't really spoken up at all since they got there.

"We did," said Robbie. "But those girls are checking us out!" he said excitedly but sarcastically, trying to imitate Verchota. Verchota elbowed him. "Ow."

"Baby," commented Verchota. "That didn't hurt." Verchota turned around again to see the girls giggling. The guys went back to watching the game again, until Robbie decided to get more food and beer.

"Anyone want anything?"

"Can you get me another beer?" asked Mark.

"Get me a pretzel," said Bah.

"Okay, sure." Robbie began walking away and Verchota stopped him.

"Can you get me nachos?"

"Yeah."

"With cheese please."

"Okay," Robbie answered.

"And jalapeños on the side." 

"Do you want a coke with ice too?" Robbie asked, annoyed.

"No, but I could use another beer."

"Get it yourself. I can't carry all that."

"You asked if we wanted anything."

"Yeah, I meant a box of popcorn or a pretzel. Or even some beer. Not a meal and dessert."

"Don't worry. I'm gonna ask the girls behind us for that," joked Verchota. Bah and Mark both looked over at him, and Bah started laughing while Mark had a shocked expression on his face like he couldn't believe what Verchota said.

While Robbie was waiting in line, a girl walked up behind him.

"I can't believe how long the line is," she said. "I should make my friends come up here and wait."

"Yeah, really. Most of the stuff I'm getting isn't even for me," said Robbie.

"I know. All I wanted was a drink, and I'm bringing three hot dogs, popcorn, and cotton candy back." Robbie smiled. "I'm Megan by the way."

"I'm Rob," he said, shaking her extended hand.

After talking for a few minutes and slowly moving up in the line, they both got their orders and walked back to their seats.

"You and your friends should come down and sit with us," Robbie suggested. "There are some empty seats next to us."

"Okay."

Verchota and Bah were very happy that the girls came down to sit with them. For the rest of the game, they talked with the girls and barely paid attention to the game. Only Rizzo and Mark seemed to be interested in watching it. Once the game was over, they went their separate ways, and Bah and Verchota were both disappointed they didn't get a date out of it.

"I thought for sure she was into me," said Verchota. "I'm so good at knowing when girls like me," he told Bah. Rizzo and Mark exchanged glances that silently said, 'Yeah right.'

"I know. And no date. Where's Mac though? It seemed like that Megan chick was really into him."

"I don't know. He said he'd meet us outside somewhere."

After Robbie found his friends, they all went back to the dorms, and the whole way, Bah and Verchota grilled Robbie about the girl he met. Robbie had a date the next afternoon with her, and he wanted to see how things went from there. They were going to an early dinner, because she had to work at night.

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After Robbie's date with Megan, it was still early, so he decided to go to the bar and meet up with some of the guys. When he got there, Robbie noticed that the only other guys there were Rammer, Rizzo, Silky, and OC. Robbie wasn't thrilled about the prospect of spending time with OC, but instead of acting immature, Robbie went over to the table anyway. He said hi to everyone, including OC. OC only mumbled a response back, but Robbie thought a mumbled response was better than no response and it was a step forward from before.

It turned out that none of the other guys showed up, but it wasn't too awkward. Once the guys began drinking, any team divisions that still existed weren't really visible.

"So who's this Megan girl I've been hearing all about?" Rammer asked Robbie.

"I met her at the Twins game yesterday, and we went out this afternoon."

"Aw, Mac has a girlfriend," said Silky.

"We've gone on one date. She's not my girlfriend . . . yet."

"Is this one a keeper though?" asked Rammer.

"No," Robbie said immediately. Then he explained his reasoning. "She's clingy. I can already tell. And she's far too serious. She's the type that calls at least twice a day 'just to say hi,'" Robbie said, imitating what Megan might sound like. The guys laughed at this. "Needless to say, unfortunately, she's nothing like my ex."

"I thought you're never allowed to say her name again," Rammer reminded him.

"One, I didn't say her name. And two, Verchota's not here." After the last time Laura and Robbie broke up, Verchota threatened Robbie to get over her and never say her name again. Apparently, Verchota thought Robbie was too depressed about the breakup.

"I'm lucky my girlfriend doesn't do that," said OC.

"Here we go again," mumbled Rizzo, setting his beer on the table. Robbie and Rammer gave Rizzo a questioning look.

"Spare us, OC," said Silky. "No one cares about how perfect you think Maddie is."

"Maddie's his girlfriend, I take it?" asked Robbie. Silky nodded his head.

"Yeah, and Silky, maybe I talk about how perfect she is, because she is perfect."

"Okay, whatever you say," Silky said, rolling his eyes.

"You don't need to agree," said OC.

"This happens every time," Rizzo then told Robbie and Rammer, before Silky started talking again.

"But if I don't agree, you get all defensive and then tell me every reason I should think she's amazing."

"Well, she's not clingy and needy. Maddie knows I don't want her calling me every two hours just to say hi. And she's not high maintenance either. When she wakes up with bed head and raccoon eyes from her makeup, she doesn't run to the bathroom to fix it before I see her."

"That's because you think she's soooo cute with bed head and raccoon eyes and you like her no matter what," Silky said imitating him.

"Okay, let's talk about something else," said Rizzo, feeling the need to cut in before things got too out of hand. Robbie helped with the change of subject.

"So the trainer at the U thinks I should have surgery on my wrist."

"The trainer at the U doesn't know jack shit," said Rammer.

"I know. So that's why I asked Doc. He said I might need something done later on, if it gets really sore or something, but that it would be years down the road."

"What happened to it?" asked OC. Robbie had to replay the words in his head again, because the first time he was so surprised OC was talking to him, he didn't really let the words sink in completely.

"I got hit at the end of last year into the boards and had a minor fracture. I didn't need a cast or anything, cause it was so minor, but the trainer thought I should have surgery on it. I guess surgery would prevent a more serious injury down the road. Recovery time would take at least two months though, and I didn't want to be out that long. Especially when I don't really need surgery in the first place."

"Maddie's going to school for athletic training," OC pointed out, almost as if he hadn't been paying attention to a word Robbie had said.

"Oh really?" said Rammer.

"Yeah. That's actually how we met. She was-"

"We don't need to hear the story. I've already heard it enough," said Rizzo. "If Rammer and Mac really want to know, you can tell them some other time."

"Better yet, maybe he should get all the guys together that don't know Maddie, and tell them everything about her all at once. Then we would never have to hear anything again."

"But that would take a year. At least," said Rizzo in response to Silky's suggestion.

"So what do you guys think of Herb so far?" Rammer asked.

"He's . . . interesting," said Silky.

"I've never had a coach like him, that's for sure," said Rizzo, backing Silky up.

"Yeah, when I first started playing for him, I thought he was completely crazy," said Robbie. "Now . . . well, I still think he's crazy but I'm used to it now."

"Does he always say those weird things though?" asked Silky.

"Oh, his sayings? Yeah, I guess. Some of them are new ones though."

"Like 'two monkeys trying to hump a football'?" asked Rizzo, commenting on when Robbie and OC fought. The guys laughed, with the exception of OC, who had been staring off into space.

"Are you with us, OC?" Silky asked.

"I can't wait until she gets here," he said with a smile.

"Oh my God," groaned Silky. "This is ridiculous."

"It sounds like you don't like Maddie too much, Silk," Rammer said.

"I don't," he plainly stated. "She made OC turn into, like, an emotional girl or something." Rammer and Robbie laughed.

"OC is different, I'll give you that," agreed Rizzo.

"So you don't like her either?" Rammer asked Robbie.

"I like her. She's a good friend. I still get annoyed with OC though. When they're not together for more than a few days at a time, OC only thinks about her."

"If he's this bad now, what'll happen after seven months?" Robbie wondered out loud.

"Personally, I think the only reason OC gets the way he is right now, is because he hasn't had any in more than a week. And since he's 'in love' with Maddie, he can't do anything to hurt her."

"Well, good for him. I would never cheat on a girl I loved either," said Rammer.

"I wouldn't either," said Silky, defensively.

"Silk, you have before. Multiple times," said Rizzo.

"I wasn't in love with them. Let's out it this way, I would never cheat on the girl I planned on marrying."

"You plan on getting married?" asked Rammer.

"Eventually."

"I don't see you as the type." Silky shrugged in response and took a drink of his beer. For the rest of the night, the guys tried keeping on conversation topics that wouldn't lead to any more discussion of OC's girlfriend, but it was easier said than done. OC seemed to find a way to bring her into every conversation. Robbie was getting sick of it, along with everyone else. Hearing everything about OC and Maddie's relationship though, Robbie started to miss having a girlfriend. Megan wasn't the girl on his mind though. Even though she had potential, Robbie couldn't stop thinking about Laura and what she had been doing lately.


	10. Chapter 10

meadow567: Gotta love the Boston guys. They'll be around in the upcoming chapters more and more too. Mainly because I love them so much. 3 Thanks for the review!

Kate: Thanks! I'm glad you like it so far and I hope you enjoy the chapters coming up. Thanks again for the review!

Neonbible: Yeah, this site can be a pain at times. Glad you liked the chapter though, and thanks for the review!

A/N: This one's kind of short, but in two weeks, the updates will be longer or more frequent, cause I'm almost dine with school. Yay!! Please review, it'll make me really happy. Especially because this weekend, and next week, will suck really bad. I have an organic chem test to study for, two books to read, two papers to write, and a lab report to do. UGH! Oh well, enough of me complaining, enjoy the chapter!

Oh yeah, and a couple of the conversations, the one with Robbie and Maddie and the one with OC, Robbie, and Maddie, I just summarized cause I wrote it in my last story. I didn't want to sound repetitive for those of you who read Glory Days.

Chapter 10:

Robbie was leaving the locker room after practice one day to go to his room. When he walked into the hallway, he was surprised to see a pretty brunette standing there.

"Hey," Robbie said. She said hi back and Robbie continued to stand there for a minute, wondering who she was.

After Robbie found out that she was waiting for OC, his curiosity was peaked even more. _This isn't Maddie, is it? _Robbie wondered. He found out that the girl was indeed Maddie and he then introduced himself. Apparently, Maddie hadn't heard too many good things about him, because she looked completely surprised when she found out that he was the Robbie McClanahan. Robbie was going to ask if she wanted him to get OC, but then Rizzo came out and Robbie decided to go back to his room.

Not even five minutes after Robbie got back to his room, the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey Robbie," a cheery voice said. It was Megan.

"Hi Megan."

"How are you?"

"Good," he answered.

"What are you doing?"

"I just got back from practice."

"Yeah, that's what I figured."

_Then why'd you call? _Robbie wondered. _I should have told her I didn't have a phone in my room when she asked for my number. _As Megan started telling Robbie all about her day, Robbie began getting his laundry together so he could wash some things. Megan went on and on, barely stopping for a breath.

"That's great Megan," Robbie said in response to something she was telling him. "I have to get going though."

"Where are you going?"

"I need to do some laundry."

"You can do it later, can't you?"

"No, cause I'm going out with the guys tonight."

"Oh," she said, sounding disappointed. "When are we going to go out again?"

"We just went out last night."

"I know. But I miss you."

Robbie rolled his eyes._ This already? _he thought. Then he said, "How about tomorrow night?"

"All right," she said, even though Robbie could tell she was annoyed.

"I'll talk to you later."

"Okay. Do you think you'll be home by midnight?"

"I don't know, Megan."

"Well, I'll try calling you then."

"Okay," Robbie said, making a note to himself that he needed to come home after midnight, or at least not answer the phone later.

After hanging up with Megan, Robbie went to the laundry room to put his clothes in the washer. On his way back up, he noticed OC's door open and saw OC and Maddie standing there. He stopped in for a minute to say hi, and a somewhat awkward conversation with OC followed. Even though OC could have been being nice partly because Maddie was standing right there, Robbie really thought OC was coming around. Robbie also thought Maddie seemed pretty nice. She was a lot better than Silky had made her out to be the past few days, and Robbie was slightly jealous that OC had a girl like Maddie. Even though Robbie could clearly see a difference between Maddie and Laura, Maddie reminded him of Laura in a weird way. _Maybe it's just because I miss her,_ Robbie thought.

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The next month went by quickly, and the team really started coming together. In that month, Robbie broke up with Megan and decided that he didn't want a relationship with anyone at the moment. At first, he thought Maddie being around would make him want a girlfriend even more, but he came to realize things were easier without a girl. Especially a girl that wouldn't leave him alone. Robbie needed his space, and Megan wouldn't give him that. The way he saw it, all other girls would be the same.

On a Friday night, Robbie was out with some of the guys at a bar. They were drinking and having a good time, all of them ready for the weekend. It was really nice, because this weekend the guys had Saturday and Sunday off. Herb and Craig both had to be at a meeting with the Olympic Committee, so the guys got an unusual day off. That afternoon, Herb made it clear they were all still supposed to do some lifting and strength training, but as far as they were concerned, what Herb didn't know, wouldn't hurt.

"Hey Bah. Hot blondes," said Silky pointing to girls standing near the bar with blonde hair. Bah looked over. "Especially the one laughing on the end."

"Eh. She's okay. I've seen hotter."

"Whatever, man. I guess that just means I don't need to fight you for her."

"Who are you guys talking about?" asked Cox.

"That chick at the bar," Silky said, pointing.

"She's not hot."

"You guys are both crazy," said Silky.

"Well, she's not my type," Cox explained. "I like brunettes."

"What about brunettes?" asked Mark.

"I like brunettes better than blondes, for the most part. Silky likes that blonde over there," he explained. The rest of the guys at the table turned their attention to the girls standing at the bar.

"Laura?" Robbie wondered out loud.

"Oh my God. It is Laura!" said Verchota.

"I guess you won't have her all to yourself," Bah whispered to Silky. "It looks like she might be taken." Silky half ignored him.

"Who is that Robbie?"

"That's Laura Campbell. Robbie's ex-girlfriend," Verchota answered.

"Oooh, ex-girlfriend," said Silky, then looked over at Bah.

"It's a sore spot for him, so don't talk about it," Verchota explained.

"It is not," Robbie said, who had heard him.

"Yes it is. You might not want to admit it, but you know you still like her." Robbie rolled his eyes, but knew Verchota was partially right. Robbie really didn't want a girlfriend now though, so seeing her didn't matter.

"Why did you break up?" Silky asked.

"Which time?" Verchota asked, joking. "The first, tenth, or one of the other times in between?" Silky laughed.

"You two really had problems," Silky said.

"I'll say," said Bah.

"It wasn't ten times," said Robbie. "More like five. But I'm over her," he said, trying to convince his teammates.

"Then go over there and prove it. If you two leave together and you're still single tomorrow, I'll believe you," said Verchota.

"Why doesn't he go over there and hook up with her friend? Then you'll really know," said Silky.

"Why? So you can have Laura?" asked Bah.

Upon hearing this, Robbie gave Silky a warning look. Silky noticed and said, "Well, I guess he's not over her."

"I just don't want you to have her," Robbie explained. "I'll go over there and have some fun with her tonight. And she's the type that definitely won't reject. For the record, we were pretty hot together."

Silky stopped Robbie before he could go any further. "Okay, okay. Before you over share information about your private life, go over there and take care of things."

"Okay, I will," said Robbie, getting up and making his way to the bar. He began thinking about the first few times he hooked up with Laura, before they started dating and complicated things. _It's about time I had some fun, _Robbie thought. _It's been way too long. _Before that night, Robbie doubted he would ever see Laura again, let alone want to hook up with her, but he assured himself that he was over her, and nothing was wrong with the idea of having fun. _After all, I don't want to be in a relationship right now anyway, so what's the harm in spending one night with Laura?_


	11. Chapter 11

meadow567: Gotta love the Boston guys. They'll be around in the upcoming chapters more and more too. Mainly because I love them so much. 3 Thanks for the review!

NellieBly413672: Glad you liked both chapters! Maddie will be in this story too. Especially later on, once her and Laura are friends. And when they see each other, it's not that awkward, not really at least. But they will have awkward moments coming up in the next few chapters. Thanks for both reviews and I hope you like this one too!!

Chapter 11:

When Robbie approached the bar, Laura didn't notice him at first. She was talking with a few girls Robbie didn't recognize. They all looked at least a few years older than Laura. He wanted to play it cool so he pretended not to even notice her and ordered a drink, which is when she saw him.

"Robbie?"she asked in a surprised tone. He turned to face her.

"Hey Laura. How are you?" he said, still acting like he hadn't seen her earlier.

"Pretty good. How have you been?" Laura asked, still sounding surprised to see him.

"I'm doing great. So, what are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing."

"I'm just hanging out with some friends."

"No, I mean, what are you doing here . . . in Minnesota? I thought you left for Buffalo."

"Oh, that. Well, I got a better offer and decided to wait a while. I'm playing on the US Olympic team in February," Robbie added casually, like it was no big deal.

"Oh my God! Really? That's amazing."

"Yeah," Robbie said, shrugging. "So, what are you up to tonight?"

"Oh, I'm here with some people that I work with." Laura pointed out a few of the girls she was with.

"Where are you working?"

"WCCO news."

"Wow. That's great. So I guess you made it as an anchor."

"Not yet exactly. I work 'behind the scenes' you could say. In January, I'll start doing on sight reporting."

"You must be excited. I know how much you wanted to be on the news."

"Yeah. I love working there so far." They were both quiet for a minute when Robbie watched Laura and noticed her smiling.

"What?" he asked, smiling back. Laura's smile got bigger.

"I'm just happy to see you, I guess. It's been so long, and I never really thought I'd get to see you again."

"Well, here I am," Robbie said with a smile. "You look great by the way, Laur."

Before Laura could respond, someone bumped into Robbie from behind, practically knocking him into Laura. It was so hard, Robbie almost thought it was intentional. He turned around to see Silky. _So I guess it was intentional, _Robbie thought.

"Sorry, Mac. I seemed to have lost my footing," Silky said, stifling laughter.

"Yeah, I'm sure you did. Watch out, cause next time you're on the ice, you might lose your footing again," Robbie whispered to him so Laura couldn't make out what they were saying. Robbie then turned around to face Laura again and heard Silky clearing his throat a minute later. Laura looked at him and Robbie turned around again.

"So, are you going to introduce me to your friend?"

"This is Laura. Laura, this is Dave."

"Nice to meet you," Laura said, putting out her hand to shake.

"Well, it's even nicer meeting you," Silky said with a wink. Robbie rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"And it would be nicest if you left now," Robbie said.

"What if Laura wants me to say here, Mac. You didn't think about that, did ya?"

"I actually have to get going anyway. The girls are ready to leave and I have an early day tomorrow. It was really nice seeing you again though, Robbie," she said, emphasizing really.

"It was really nice seeing you too."

"Well, since you'll be in town for a while, maybe we can grab a bite to eat or see a movie or something and catch up," Laura suggested.

"Yeah," Robbie said, nodding.

"Here's my number," Laura said, scribbling her number on a napkin and handing it to Robbie. He put it in his pocket. "See you later. Nice meeting you, Dave," she said, walking away. After she was out of earshot, Silky spoke up.

"It was really nice seeing you again," he said, imitating Robbie.

"Shut up, Silky," Robbie said, smacking him. Again, Silky mocked Robbie's voice.

"And now I have my crush's phone number. I think I might frame it and hang it in my room."

"Shut up, Silky."

"Oh, come on. You know you still like her. You're smiling like your five and got a bike for Christmas."

"I am not," Robbie said, walking back to where the rest of the guys were.

"Are too."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"What are you two, five?" Rammer asked when they got back to the table. They answered at the same time.

"Yes."

"No." The guys just looked at them as they exchanged glances. Then Silky began explaining.

"Mac here, has Laura's phone number. And he's so excited that he can't wipe the smile off his face."

"I can too," he said seriously.

"Wait a minute. Laura left. So why are you here?" Bah asked.

"Cause she had to go."

"Oh, so she's taken."

"What?" Robbie said, confused.

"If you guys hooked up as much as it sounds like you did, she'd want to do it tonight too. Unless she's not single."

"Then why'd she give me her number?" Bah shrugged.

"I don't know, but if she's single, I'm sure she would have wanted to leave with you."

"Girls aren't like guys though. They don't want it all the time," Coxie pointed out.

"Exactly," Robbie said.

"But she wanted it all the time before, didn't she?" asked Silk.

"No."

"It sure seems like it after all the times I've heard that you two were together."

"Well, she just wasn't in the mood. Sometimes I'm not in the mood." Silky laughed at that.

"Sometimes you're not in the mood my ass."

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The next afternoon, Robbie finally decided to give Laura a call. He had been trying to decide whether to call all morning, because he didn't want to call too soon and sound desperate or something. Laura answered the phone on the fifth ring, out of breath.

"Hello?"

"Hey Laura. Is this a bad time? Cause if you're busy I can call back later," Robbie said quickly, not wanting to bother her, and beginning to think he should have waited longer before calling.

"No it's okay. I was outside and heard the phone ringing so I ran in to get it before it stopped." She paused for a minute and then added somewhat hesitantly, "I didn't know if it was an important call."

"So do I qualify as important?"

"Oh, Robbie, it's you!" Laura said happily, with the fact that it was Robbie just dawning on her. He chuckled at her sudden realization.

"Yeah, what's going on?"

"Not a lot since last night." Laura's comment made Robbie think again that he called her too soon.

"Yeah, sorry. I just, um . . . was sitting here not doing anything and I decided to give you a call."

"That's fine. It's good to hear from you. I'm glad giving you my number wasn't for nothing. I wasn't sure if you'd call."

"Yeah, I wanted to," Robbie said, unsure what else to say. An awkward moment of silence followed before both Robbie and Laura began talking at the same time. They laughed at the awkwardness for a few seconds.

"You first," Robbie said.

"No, you first."

"Okay, well I was just wondering what you were up to tonight. What were you going to say?"

"I was gonna ask the same thing. I'm not doing anything."

"Neither am I. Maybe we could get something to eat and hang out for while."

"Okay. I'd like that," Laura responded.

"I'll pick you up at six then?"

"Sounds like a plan."

"Wait. Where do you live?" Robbie asked, realizing that he didn't have Laura's new address. After Robbie got Laura's address they said good bye and hung up the phone.

An hour before Robbie had to leave to get Laura, he took a walk down to the lounge to let his friends know that he wouldn't be going out with them that night. Verchota, Silky, and Bah were watching TV, and Robbie decided to join them because he was all ready to go. He surprised himself by getting ready more quickly than he thought. After Robbie sat there for a minute, Verchota turned to him.

"What's goin on man?"

"What are you talking about?" Robbie asked.

"I think you know." Robbie looked at him blankly before Verchota continued. "That cologne, or whatever the hell you're wearing."

"I'm not wearing cologne," Robbie stated truthfully.

"No man naturally smells as good as you do right now," Verchota shot back.

"It's aftershave. I got a new aftershave," Robbie admitted.

"Well, I'd lighten up - to the point of non use."

"Whatever."

"Look, you haven't picked up any girls yet. What makes you think you'll get lucky tonight?"

"He's not even going out with us," Silky piped up.

"Yeah, he's not," Verchota remembered, and then excitedly added, "Oh, you're going out with her, aren't you?"

"No," Robbie said, immediately.

"I knew it! You have a hot date."

"Who with?" asked Bah.

"Who else?" commented Silky. "Laura."

"So what if I do?"

"A new aftershave? You must really like her," said Silky. "Cause if you're trying to impress us, it's not working," he added, smirking at his comment. Robbie stood up.

"I'm leaving now," he said, walking away, deciding to just go back to his room. He didn't want to be teased and tortured for the next hour.

"Safe sex!" Silky yelled loudly down the hall, gaining the attention of a group of parents and high schoolers who happened to be walking down the hall, getting a tour of the dorms. Receiving glares, Silky then turned back to facing the TV, with him, Bah, and Verchota trying to hold in laughter.

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter and please review! The next one will hopefully be up late next weekend, but I have five exams over the next week and a half, so I can't make any promises. It will be Robbie and Laura's date!


	12. Chapter 12

miracle fan 9245: Thanks! I'm glad you like my stories. And I know how it is not finding stories for a while. When I first found this site actually, there were so many stories I wanted to read that I was spending like hours reading them, lol. Thanks for the review and I hope you like this chapter!

meadow567: Yeah, five exams. :( I'm just glad I'm just about done. But Laura has definitely grown up some. And you're thoughts about Buffalo are along the right lines. :) Thanks for the review and enjoy the chapter!

NellieBly413672: I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for the review. There's definitely going to be more of Mac being cute. Well, Mac and Laura. Hope you like the chapter!

neonnbible: Yeah, Laura is growing up. Her and Robbie will still have their issues though, as you'll see later. I hope you enjoythis chapter and thanks for the review!

A/N: Thanks to everyone again for the reviews. Getting them made my day especially because I usually read them after a long day of studying. Speaking of which, sorry this update took so long. With exams, I just didn't have time to write it. Luckily, my exams are officially over after tomorrow, so the updates should be more frequent. This chapter is actually longer than I thought it would be too. It's just their date, so none of the guys are in this one, just Laura and Robbie. Enjoy and please review!

Chapter 12

At six o'clock, Robbie was at Laura's apartment and knocked at the door. He didn't know why, but he was almost nervous. Robbie reminded himself they were just going out as friends, to catch up since they hadn't seen each other in so long. After knocking at the door, he only waited seconds before Laura answered.

"Hey Robbie, " Laura said, greeting him with a smile.

"Hey. Ready to go?"

"Yeah. I'm just going to grab my purse and we can go. You're welcome to come in for a minute." Robbie followed her inside and waited in the living room while she disappeared down the hallway. He noticed some pictures around the living room, including one of the two of them. Robbie was still looking at the picture when Laura came back.

"That's when we were at the party after you guys won that hockey tournament," Laura said. Robbie turned to look at her, half wondering why a picture of the two of them would be up, but he didn't let his curiosity on. Laura explained anyway though. "I had to have a picture that I looked good in. I'm not the most photogenic person and that's actually a very good picture of me," she said in a completely believable tone of voice.

"You're photogenic. But I think part of the reason you look really good in the picture is because it's of us. We were a pretty hot couple." Robbie looked at the picture again. "I think we really complemented each other." Laura stepped over to admire the photo too.

"Yeah, I guess we did look good together," she said with a smile, looking Robbie in the eyes. After holding each other's glance for a few seconds, they both snapped out of it. "So, are you ready to go? I'm starving. I haven't eaten since eight this morning."

"Eight this morning?! I'd be starving too. I'm starving now and I ate three hours ago," Robbie said.

Robbie and Laura chatted a little in the car on the quick drive to the restaurant. They decided to go to Joey's Pizza, which was five minutes away from Laura's apartment.

"What are you going to have?" Robbie asked Laura as they looked at the menu.

"I don't know. The Hawaiian Pizza's really good. So is the Four Cheese though," Laura responded, looking at the menu.

"Eww, you like Hawaiian Pizza?" Robbie asked, making a disgusted face.

"What?" Laura said, innocently.

"It has pineapple on it, right?"

"Yeah, so?" Laura said, laughing at Robbie's disgust.

"That's like, the oxymoron of pizza. Fruit on pizza? That's like . . . um . . . " Robbie tried to think of something to compare it to. "Like putting catsup on macaroni and cheese or something."

"What's wrong with that?" Laura asked with a really serious expression.

"Don't tell me you do that too?" Robbie groaned. Laura giggled.

"No, I don't. So what are you getting Mr. 'I think pineapple on pizza is so weird'?"

"Traditional cheese and pepperoni. Chicago style of course, because everyone knows that deep dish kicks ass," Robbie said with a grin.

The waitress then came over and took their orders. They each ordered individual pizzas, and Robbie ordered wings to go with his. After the waitress left, Robbie looked at Laura in mock disgust again. He liked teasing her.

"Whatever," she said, rolling her eyes. Laura knew exactly why he was looking at her like that. "Have you ever even tried Hawaiian pizza?"

"No."

"Then don't say you don't like it."

After several seconds of silence, Robbie asked Laura what she had been up to since graduation.

"Not a whole lot. Working, visiting my family, hanging out. I take it you've probably been busy with hockey?"

"Yeah. Herb's been working us hard, but the team's starting to look good. We're starting our pre-Olympic tour in two weeks."

"Where are you going?"

"For the first two weeks, we're going to Europe, but after that we're back here. We'll be playing different teams nearby and stuff after that."

"Europe should be fun. I've always wanted to go."

"Yeah. It'll be my first time, so I'm sort of excited. I don't know how much sight seeing we'll be able to do though. Our schedule's pretty full with games." Laura nodded.

A few minutes later their food came. They both enjoyed their dinner, and Robbie tried the Hawaiian Pizza due to Laura's imminent request. He thought it was surprisingly good. He didn't think he would ever order a whole Hawaiian Pizza by himself, but it wasn't bad. Robbie and Laura then began talking about college and old friends that they've seen since graduating. After talking about Robbie's friends for a few minutes, he asked Laura about her friends.

"How are Erica, Debbie, and Whitney?" Robbie asked, between bites of pizza. Laura shrugged before responding.

"I don't talk to them much anymore."

"Really?"

"Yeah. They're still the same though. I think Whitney's working somewhere, but I don't know what Erica and Debbie are doing."

"A lot of people seem to lose contact after graduation. I'm lucky to still be playing with several guys from the team."

"Yeah. I don't really mind that we don't hang out anymore," Laura said, referring to her friends. "But sometimes I feel like such a bum because I sit at home on Saturday nights with nothing to do."

"Well, you were at the bar the other night," Robbie said.

"Yeah. I think the girls from work felt sorry for me," Laura said with an expression Robbie couldn't exactly read. He got the impression she didn't want to talk about it though, so he sort of changed the subject.

"What about that girl you hung out with sometimes? What was her name? Sara? I think she was in some of your classes. Have you seen her at all?"

"Oh, Stephanie?" Laura asked.

"Yeah. Have you seen her since graduating? She was going into reporting or something too, right?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"Too bad you didn't end up at the same station. Then you would have known someone from that start."

"I don't think so. We couldn't have worked together. It would not have turned out well," Laura said with a slight smile.

"Why's that?"

"You don't wanna know," Laura assured him. He pressed the issue anyway.

"Come on. What happened? Did you have some big girl fight or something?"

"You could say that." Robbie gave her a questioning look. "Right after we broke up, I went to a party that Stephanie's boyfriend, Ryan, had. It was an end of the year thing and I got plastered. I was talking to Ryan and he started complaining about Stephanie and what they didn't do. He was drunk too, and the next thing I really remember is Stephanie walking in on us in his room. Actually, we weren't doing anything. We would have if she didn't find us, but at the time we were sitting on his bed, talking and flirting. She thought that I was trying to steal Ryan from her, and hasn't talked to me since. I guess I deserve it though. I used flirt or even do more with guys that I knew had girlfriends all the time," Laura said, looking guilty.

Robbie didn't know what to say to make her feel better, but he knew Laura had a reputation for doing things like that. Luckily, he didn't have to say anything, because Laura made a joke about it, lightening things up.

Once Robbie and Laura finished their pizza, they both pulled out their wallets to pay the bill.

"I got it, Laur."

"You don't have to. Let me pay for mine."

"I asked you out for dinner. I'm paying."

"But-"

"No buts. I got it. Just say thank you and out your money away."

"Thanks, Robbie. But I'm paying for putt-putt," Laura said, referring to their plans after dinner. They had already decided that they were going to play mini golf.

"We'll see."

"Robbie! If you don't let me, then we can't be friends anymore," Laura said, pretending to be serious. "For one, friends pay separately, and for two, if they were paying together, they take turns."

"How about whoever wins, pays," Robbie said with a challenging smile.

"That doesn't make sense," said Laura. Then it hit her. "Oh, so you think you'll win and then get to pay. Well, you have another thing coming mister."

"Oh, is that right?"

"Yeah. I'll have you know I'm really good at golf," said Laura as they walked out of the restaurant.

"Okay," Robbie said, clearly not believing her though.

"You don't think I can beat you?"

"No. Not really," said Robbie, shaking his head and smiling.

When they began their game, Robbie brought up winning again.

"I'll let you go first. That way I can at least make sure I let you off a little easy. If you have trouble on a hole in particular, I'll do bad on that one too." Laura playfully smacked him and then set up her golf ball.

"I'm going to get one under par on this one," she stated confidently.

"Laura, I think you misread the sign. This is a par three."

"Haha, very funny," she said sarcastically, then smiled.

"I'll believe it when I see it," Robbie said. Two strokes later, he saw it all right. Just like Laura said, she got it in in two. Robbie didn't say anything but set up his ball next. It took him three strokes.

"What do you have to say for yourself now?" Laura asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Lucky shot," he replied. "We still have seventeen more holes."

By the time they reached the last hole, Laura was winning. Only by nine, but winning none the less. It was Robbie's turn and before he putted, Laura made a comment.

"Are you getting this one in under par?"

He thought for a minute before responding, "One under."

"You must have misread the sign," Laura mimicked him from earlier. "This is hole eighteen, not par eighteen. This one's a par four."

"Doesn't someone just think they're hilarious?" Robbie said, smiling at Laura and then putted and ended up getting the ball in in four."

"Well, I won. Sorry, but it looks like I'm paying," Laura said. Robbie walked over to her and put his hands lightly on her waist.

"What if I don't let you?"

"I told you, we can't be friends," said Laura, turning away from him and out of his arms to go to the counter.

"How about best out of three?" Robbie asked, following.

"Nope. A deal's a deal. You're just upset that a girl beat you at putt-putt. You better ice your ego when you get home, cause I can already see the bruise starting to appear," Laura said, trying to be funny.

"I let you win," said Robbie.

"Oh yeah. I'm sure you did. Especially after all the complaining you did about me paying."

"Uh-huh." Then Robbie said, "Let's play something else."

"Okay, what?"

"There's arcade games, and where there's arcade games, there has to be air hockey."

"Okay." They found the air hockey tables in under a minute and Robbie quickly put coins in to play. As they began the game, Robbie started getting really aggressive.

"Jeeze, Robbie. Watch out. You're gonna kill me," Laura said as the puck kept flying at her. A few times it bounced on the table from Robbie hitting it so hard.

"I'm not letting you win this."

"I can tell. You're almost getting violent," Laura joked. Robbie scored on Laura six times, pretty quickly. "Let me get at least one."

"Nope. I can't. Hockey's my thing. This is going to be a shut out."

"Robbie, ice hockey's your thing. This is air hockey."

"So, it's a form of hockey."

"I think I prefer non-competitive hockey."

"Non-competitive hockey? That doesn't exist."

"Tonsil hockey's non-competitive," Laura said, matter of factly, hitting the puck really hard and finally scoring. "Ha. Not a shut out. I scored."

"That's not fair. You took my concentration away with the tonsil hockey thing. Which, by the way, can be competitive." Laura laughed. "It is," Robbie assured her. "I've had some very intense, very competitive, tonsil hockey sessions." This made Laura laugh harder as Robbie took the puck and shot it at Laura, scoring easily. "Game over. I win," said Robbie.

"Okay, I guess you're better at air hockey than me. But it was fun. Sometime we'll have to try real hockey too. Even though you're obviously better, I'd take the challenge."

"Aw, Laura. Don't sell yourself short. You might be better at tonsil hockey than me."

"I said real hockey, you idiot," said Laura, playfully hitting him. Robbie grabbed her arm.

"I thought tonsil hockey was real hockey to you," Robbie said. "I must have been mistaken." As Laura tried to hit him again with her free hand, Robbie grabbed that one too. "I don't think so. You can't abuse me like that. Don't make me tie your hands up."

"Tie my hands up and do what with me?" Laura challenged, grinning mischievously.

"Get your dirty mind out of the gutter," Robbie said, laughing and then finally letting go of her arms. "Ready to go? Or do you want to lose at something else tonight?"

Robbie and Laura ended up playing a few more games, and then they drove back to Laura's apartment.

"I had a really good time tonight," Laura said when they were in front of her driveway.

"Me too. We'll have to hang out more often."

"Yeah. It's still sort of early now though. If you want to come upstairs for while, you're more than welcome."

"Okay."

Robbie and Laura talked and laughed about just about anything for almost three hours. It seemed like they would never run out fo things to say. By midnight, Robbie knew Laura was tired, because she tried to hide a yawn.

"Well, I better get going. Herb will kill me if I'm tired and have a crappy practice tomorrow."

"I understand. I have to get up pretty early too. Next week we should do something again though. Tonight was the most fun I've had in a long time."

"Okay. How about I call you and we'll go do something next week."

"Okay, I'd like that," Laura said with a smile. There were a few awkward moments as they said good-bye. This was partly because it was one of the first times they weren't spending the night together. They didn't even kiss or anything. Robbie thought about it, but he didn't want to throw the friendship thing down the drain. He really liked hanging out with Laura. The weird thing was, Robbie almost enjoyed tonight more than some other times he spent with Laura. She was fun to be around and easy to talk to, and Robbie wondered if she still felt anything for him. Robbie thought his feelings were gone, but after tonight, he wasn't so sure. Maybe they were better off as friends, but Robbie couldn't help but wonder.

Little did he know, after he left, Laura began wondering the same exact thing. She crawled into bed, almost wishing he would have kissed her. Then she wondered whether she really wanted that again or not. At one point, she loved Robbie so much, but after breaking up so many times, she assumed they weren't meant to be. Feelings came flooding back after spending time together though, and she felt exactly like she had in college a few short months ago. But Laura didn't think she wanted the drama their relationship usually brought with it. Or did she? Trying not to think about it anymore, Laura finally drifted off to sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

meadow567: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked it!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, I had to put that in cuz one of my good friends does that with his girlfriend all of the time. He's so competitive but it's really funny to watch them. Thanks for reviewing.

neonnbible: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. Hope you enjoy this chapter too.

xcapitalbarbie90: Thanks for the review! There will definitely be lots more cute scenes like the air hockey one in up coming chapters, because I'm a big fan of fluff!

Chapter 13:

"How was your date last night?" Bah asked the next morning, as Robbie walked into the locker room before practice.

"I'm surprised he's here on time," Silky commented.

"It was fun," Robbie answered Bah, ignoring Silky's comment.

"I'm sure it was," hinted Silky.

"It was. We went out for dinner and then went to Putt Putt."

"I think someone's leaving out the most important part," Silky said.

"Is that all you think about?" Robbie shot back.

"So are you going to call her?" interrupted Verchota.

"Yeah."

"You owe me twenty," he told Pav.

"Damn," Pav said, handing Verchota a twenty-dollar bill.

"What's going on?"

"I bet Pav that you would end up wanting to get back together with her after last night," Verchota explained.

"I'm just calling her to hang out again. We're staying friends this time. Even if I wanted more, I don't think she does. We really just had fun hanging out as friends." After hearing this, Pav grabbed the money from Verchota.

"Not so fast, Pav. They could still end up together again. This happens every time."

"I'll give you the money when they're official," Pav promised.

"Hey country boy hicks, you better stop acting like cows grazing in the field and get your asses on the ice, cause practice starts in two minutes," OC said, getting their attention and causing them to finish getting ready fast and on the ice.

After practice that day, Robbie was sitting in his room when his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey Robbie. It's Laura."

"Hey. What's going on?"

"Um, I was just calling to say thanks again for last night. It was fun."

"You're welcome. I had fun too. If you're not busy Friday, maybe we could do something again," Robbie suggested.

"I can't. I'm sorry," Laura said apologizing.

"Okay. Well, how about Saturday then?"

"I can't. Look Robbie, I'm sorry, but, I just . . . well . . . it's not a good idea," said Laura, stumbling over her words. Robbie had no idea what to say. He thought she had a lot of fun. "I did have fun though," Laura finally said, hoping Robbie would respond.

"Why did you change your mind about hanging out more?" Robbie wondered.

"It just makes things complicated," was Laura's response.

"Laura, I know how things have gotten in the past. But I promise it won't be like before. We'll keep things totally platonic," Robbie said, knowing why she might be a little concerned.

"I don't think platonic exists for us, Robbie."

"It will if we make it."

"Why do you care so much? If you want to just be friends, why can't you handle not seeing me at all?"

"Because I enjoy your company," Robbie seriously said while trying to be cute.

"I enjoy yours too, but I don't want to do this again."

"Do what?" Laura sighed before explaining.

"The same thing happens every time we hang out. We hook up and stupidly make the decision to try things one more time. Then we break up, because obviously, we're not meant to be together."

"Let's try to be just friends," Robbie pleaded. He really didn't want to let this one go.

"I don't want to be just friends Robbie!" Laura half yelled, frustrated that he wouldn't let it go. Then she softly said, "It's too hard when I look at you and remember what kissing you feels like." Robbie was somewhat shocked at what Laura though, and didn't respond for what seemed like a few minutes. Laura spoke first. "I'm sorry, I have to go."

"Wait!" said Robbie. "Don't hang up." Then he continued. "At first, I thought being just friends with you was great. I didn't think I wanted to start anything right now, you or anyone else. But then, well, after going out last night . . . I still like you. I mean really like you. Feelings I thought had been gone were still there, and I just can't let them go easily either. I didn't know you felt the same though, so I figured I'd try to keep things at the friends level."

Laura felt a twinge of happiness, knowing that Robbie felt the same way as her, but at the same time, she was sort of scared. "Robbie, I don't want things to end up like they have in the past."

"We can try harder."

"Isn't that what we said last time?"

"We'll do things different." Laura didn't respond. She wanted to give in to him, but tried not to at first. "How about tomorrow you meet me at the bar near campus. I'll be there with the guys from the team around eight. A few of them have girlfriends or wives that will be there too. It will be casual, and a good way to try one more time." Robbie found himself reflexively cross his fingers, in hopes she would say yes.

"Okay." Laura gave in, telling herself it was only because she owed it to Robbie. Owed him for what, she didn't really know, but it sounded like a good argument.

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Friday night, Robbie got to the bar just after eight. It turned out that most of the other guys had decided to go somewhere else that night. There was supposedly a party that they were crashing on campus. Laura wasn't there yet, and neither were Buzz and his wife, Gail, so for now it was just Robbie, Rizzo, OC, and Maddie.

Buzz and Gail ended up showing up a few minutes later. Within minutes, the guys were at one end of the table having a conversation, while the girls were at the other.

"Isn't it funny how girls can do that?" OC asked a little while later, looking at the two girls.

"Do what?" asked Buzz.

"Be like, best friends after knowing each other five minutes."

"Yeah, but like there are some girls who get along with everyone, some girls really can't get along with other girls."

"At least Maddie and Gail seem to be getting along great," Rizzo commented.

"Yeah, that's good because Maddie really needs a girl to talk to."

"Well, if Laura ever shows up, they'll have another girl to talk to too," Robbie mumbled, looking at his watch and wondering where Laura was.

Around ten, Buzz, Gail, and Maddie left, and Robbie, Rizzo, and OC stayed at the bar, waiting for Laura. Robbie was starting to think that Laura wasn't coming.

"So, where's this girlfriend of yours?" OC asked Robbie.

"I don't know. She's really late," responded Robbie, looking at his watch. It was now ten after ten.

"I think you got stood up," commented OC. Robbie didn't have to respond. He knew OC was probably right. As if on cue though, Laura walked in the bar and when she got to the table, she apologized for being late. Robbie then introduced to Rizzo and OC, and for the next hour, the four hung out and had some drinks. A little after eleven, they were all ready to leave. Laura ended up driving Robbie back to the dorms, because he had invited her over for a while.

"So, do you like the guys?" Robbie asked Laura once they were in his room.

"Yeah, they seem nice. I wish I could have met the two girls you were telling me about," Laura said. After she got to the bar, Laura didn't hear a lot about Gail, but she did hear quite a bit about Maddie. Laura thought Maddie seemed nice, but she was one of those people Laura never got along with in the past.

"They left about ten minutes before you got there."

"Sorry again. I was busy and ended up doing something after work so with everything going on, I just couldn't get there any earlier," Laura said vaguely. The truth was, she was actually sitting at home doing nothing, but had second thoughts about starting anything with Robbie again. After she got to the bar though, OC told her that Robbie talked about her all of the time, and Laura started to feel better about the situation. She didn't realize Robbie liked her as much as OC made it out to be.

"You look really cute tonight by the way," Robbie said, pulling Laura from her thoughts. She smiled and blushed slightly. No matter how good Laura knew she looked, Robbie's compliments always had the same effect on her. "What would you like to do?"

"I don't know," Laura responded. She walked over to Robbie's bed at sat on it next to him, because that was about the only place to sit, other than his roommate's bed. "Where's your roommate?"

"I'm not really sure," Robbie said. He didn't really care either. Robbie had planned on a nice night with Laura, but right now, he wasn't so sure anything was happening. There was then an awkward silence that filled the room. Finally, Laura broke it.

"Robbie, were you serious about giving a relationship one more try?"

"Yeah. I like you, Laur. I want to make it work."

"Okay," Laura said, smiling.

"You want to too, right?" Laura nodded in response. "Good." Robbie just looked at Laura for a minute, as she stared back. They were closer on the bed now, and Robbie slowly began leaning toward her. He softly stroked the side of her face and then leaned in to kiss her. Laura gently kissed back, and then they pulled away slightly and looked at each other. In a silent confirmation, they closed the gap between then again and kissed with a little more passion. Things between them started heating up pretty quickly, and within seconds Robbie was laying on top of Laura on the bed. He began playing with the hem of Laura's shirt near her waist, then moving his hand under it slightly. As Robbie moved his hand higher, Laura then grabbed his arm and pushed it down, also ending their short lived make-out session.

"What's wrong?" Robbie asked, searching Laura's eyes for an answer. She sat up, making Robbie get off of her before responding.

"I'm sorry. I just don't think this is a good idea." Robbie was confused.

"Why?" Laura sighed.

"Because, it's just too fast."

"What?" Robbie asked. Before, things couldn't move fast enough for Laura, and now she thought they were moving too fast?

"Robbie, I like you. I liked you in college too. Look how many times we woke up next to each other." Robbie nodded. He understood and remembered that. "But I don't want that this time. I'm looking for a relationship based on something more than just sex. I don't want to wake up every morning not knowing exactly what happened the night before and wondering what exactly I'm laying in your bed for."

"Okay."

"I'm sorry. I know we moved pretty quickly before, and maybe that was a mistake. Maybe that screwed our chances of having a good relationship, I don't know. If you don't want to try the relationship though, because you want things to be like before, or you want something completely different out of this, then I can leave," Laura said, half rambling.

"Laura, it's fine. Really. I can wait. It might even be good for us to wait. Maybe if we try something new, things will work out."

"Well, we don't have to wait for long," Laura said with a smile. "I just meant, let's not do it on our first night of being together again."

"Okay," Robbie said, then kissed Laura's forehead. "Is that why you didn't have a lot to drink tonight?"

"Yeah. Sort of. I'm trying to be a little more responsible. I tend to make really stupid decisions when I'm drunk, which I usually regret in the morning. Speaking of morning, it's getting sort of late, and I have to be up early tomorrow, so I think I'm going to get going."

"I'll walk you out," Robbie offered.

"Do you hear that?" Laura asked when they were in the hall.

"Yeah. It sort of sounds like crying."

"I wonder what's going on?" Laura wondered.

"I don't know, but after I walk you to your car, I think I'm gonna go see. The only people on this floor are they guys and Maddie, and my guess is that it's her. Walking to the car, Laura began wondering if she made the right decision by stopping Robbie. Earlier that night, she had every intention on letting whatever happened, happen, but in the moment, she just changed her mind for some reason.

Once they got to Laura's car, Robbie pulled Laura from her thoughts. "I'm glad you came tonight. And I'm glad you want to give things another chance."

"Me too. Hopefully I'll see you later this week then?"

"You can count on it," Robbie said.

Once Laura left, Robbie walked to Maddie's room, but stopped at the door before knocking. Dealing with crying girls was not his specialty. Since OC was her boyfriend, Robbie figured he would go talk to him instead.

It turned out that OC wasn't much help. Him and Maddie were apparently mad at each other about something, and Rizzo assured Robbie that he would take care of things. Robbie sure hoped someone did, because she sounded really upset.

A/N: Sorry this chapter sort of ends at a weird point. It was getting long and I wanted to get it up today, and that's all I had time to write. You can expect an update later this week though. Probably Friday. Next chapter, Laura will meet the rest of the guys and there will be more of Mac and Laura together too. I also have two questions for you guys.

1. Do you want shorter and more frequent updates, or longer and like once a week or so?

2. Should I put some of the short conversations in the story that are in Glory Days if they're relevant to this story or not? It wouldn't be too many of them, but sometimes I'd rather put in some of the short ones than explaining what happened with no dialogue. But let me know. Thanks.


	14. Chapter 14

meadow567: Glad you liked it and thanks for the input. Hope you like this chapter too!

NellieBly41372: Thanks for the review and input. I think that's what I'm going to do, on both suggestions, lol. Hvae fun seeing Shrek the Third. You'll have to let me know how it is. I wanna go see it. Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 14:

The next day, Robbie ran into OC on the way to practice. He looked terrible and like he was up all night. Robbie was going to ask what was wrong, but decided against it because he knew that he wasn't OC's favorite person.

Practice was pretty rough that day. The team was leaving for Europe in two weeks and Herb obviously wanted to be sure they were ready. Robbie was in desperate need of a massage after practice, but Maddie never showed up. Jack was still pissed after practice too. As soon as he left the locker room, Verchota spoke up.

"What did you do this time, Mac?"

"Nothing."

"Well, who's he pissed at?"

"I think him and Maddie had a fight."

"So he takes it out on us?" commented Verchota. "It must have been some fight."

The whole team had left except for Robbie and Rizzo. Robbie had been waiting around for Maddie, but then decided to leave. Maybe he could talk Laura into stopping over to give him a massage. Just as he was leaving, OC walked back in the locker room, claiming he forgot his key. It was then that Robbie heard Rizzo grilling him about talking to Maddie.

Robbie had no idea what the fight was about, until he heard 'the rabbit died.' _Maddie's pregnant! _was his first thought. He couldn't believe it.

"She's pregnant!" Robbie then exclaimed out loud. Rizzo immediately tried to cover up the slip, but it was too late. "Oh my God, I don't believe it!" Robbie said. Still, completely shocked. He never would have thought Maddie would be pregnant.

"I couldn't believe it either," OC mumbled.

"Wow. Maddie's pregnant," Robbie said, letting the idea sink in.

"Mac, if you say 'wow' or 'oh my God' one more time, you'll have a nice black eye to wow," OC threatened.

"Sorry, I'm just shocked," Robbie apologized.

"Welcome to my world."

"But you were there when it happened," Robbie pointed out, thinking that himself and the rest of the team should be more surprised than OC was. Robbie offered to check on Maddie, to make sure she was okay, but Rizzo assured him that he was going to see her. Knowing Maddie would probably open up to Rizzo more anyway, because she knew him for longer, Robbie went back to his room.

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The next weekend, Robbie made plans to go out with Laura again. They decided to go to dinner and a movie. Robbie picked an Italian restaurant for dinner, and he let Laura pick the movie. She picked a chick flick that Robbie didn't care about seeing, but he hoped they wouldn't be watching much of the movie anyway.

After the first ten minutes, Robbie was bored. His arm was already around Laura and he leaned closer. Laura looked over at him.

"Did I pick a bad movie?" Laura whispered.

"Yeah," Robbie said honestly, but laughed so Laura would know he wasn't entirely serious.

"We don't have to watch," Laura said seductively in Robbie's ear.

"What do you suppose we do instead?" Robbie asked, pretending to be innocent. Laura leaned toward him and kissed him gently. After a minute, things began heating up. Robbie pulled away slightly. "We better leave before we end up giving the teenagers behind us a show."

"But you paid for the movie."

"So what? Come on. I have a way to get the money back." Robbie grabbed Laura's hand as he led her out of the theater.

"Next time we'll have to remember to go to the drive in," Laura commented once they were out of the theater. "So what's the plan?" she then asked, wondering how Robbie was planning on getting a refund.

"Damn," he said in response, looking at the ticket counter.

"What?"

"The girl's not at the counter anymore. You'll have to do it."

"Do what?"

"Flirt with the guy at the ticket counter and ask for a refund. You're cute and he'll totally buy it."

"No way!"

"Why?"

"Because, I'm not."

"Come on. I know you know how to flirt with guys to get what you want. I've seen you do it before. I think I was even a victim at one point," Robbie joked.

"You're using me as bait?"

"Only if you want to look at it that way. The way I see it though, is that you're doing me a favor."

"Robbie," Laura pouted, sticking out her bottom lip.

"Go over there, Laur. That sad puppy dog face doesn't work on me."

"Why don't you go over there?"

"If the girl was still there, I would have, but now there's a guy. Trust me, it will work. If not, I'll make it up to you."

"How?" Laura challenged.

"I don't know yet. Let's worry about that if it doesn't work."

"Fine. But only because I want you to owe me one." Laura started walking over and suddenly turned around.

"What's wrong?" Robbie asked.

"I can't do it."

"Why?"

"That's Alex".

"Who's Alex?"

"My ex-boyfriend."

"Have you dated every guy in Minnesota?" Robbie teased. Laura rolled her eyes. "Come on. I'll buy you ice cream with the money I get back," Robbie promised.

"I don't want ice cream."

"Then I'll buy you flowers."

"I don't want flowers. They die too easily." Robbie thought for a minute.

"I'll go shopping with you and buy you one item of your choice," he said, knowing Laura would take him up on the offer.

"Really?" she asked, excitedly. Robbie nodded.

"Anything?" Laura asked in slight disbelief.

"Well, within reason. I'm not buying you an eighty dollar purse or expensive designer jeans, but we'll see what we can work out."

"Can I get that in writing?" she joked. No guy ever wanted to go shopping with her. Especially guys that knew her as well as Robbie did. "Okay, I'm going." Laura walked to the counter and gave Robbie one last glance before approaching the counter.

"Laura?" the guy working there asked, before Laura could even say anything.

"Hi Alex."

"How have you been?"

"Okay," he responded.

"I thought I remembered that you worked here," Laura said in a somewhat flirty tone.

"Yep, I do."

"I've been coming here every night for the past week, hoping to see you," Laura said, lying through her teeth.

"You have?" he asked, surprised.

"Yeah. I really miss you," she said. Again, a lie. Alex was the last person she would ever miss. They dated for about a month, during one of her and Robbie's breaks. Laura couldn't stand him anymore though. She had really only started seeing him because he was available and willing, and more importantly because at the time, he was seeing a girl that Laura hated.

"Wow. I never thought I'd hear you say that. Especially after everything that happened between us," Alex admitted.

"Well, I do," Laura said, with a fake smile.

"I missed you too." Laura couldn't believe he missed her. After all, they broke up because she cheated on him with some other guy at a party. "I know you made mistakes, but everyone does. And I know you were drunk when it happened. I completely forgive you," Alex said, referring to catching her cheating.

"God, I feel so stupid," said Laura, flipping her hair back, remembering how Alex loved her hair. "I've seen the same movie five times this week, all because I was hoping to see you," she said, again with a fake smile and squeezing his forearm gently. "I can't bare to watch it again though."

"Well, I could refund your ticket. We're not supposed to but I guess I could make an exception."

"Really? You'd do that?"

"Yeah sure."

"Okay. I actually have two tickets though. My friend came with me." Alex took both tickets and gave Laura money back.

"So, I get off in a half hour. Do you want to go to my place and get reacquainted?" Luckily Robbie must have seen her get the money, because he then walked up and wrapped his arm around her waist, then kissed her temple. Laura was happy he did, because her response would have been nasty. "Who's that?" Alex then asked.

"My friend, Robbie. Actually, he's my boyfriend."

"Wait. I thought you wanted-"

"Alex, I have to go. We have plans that really can't wait much longer," Laura said, looking at Robbie. She turned around quickly and left with Robbie right behind her.

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Over the next two weeks, the guys were all getting ready to go to Europe. Robbie saw Laura every few days, but tried to keep things quiet from the guys. It wasn't that he didn't want his friends to know, but him and Laura decided that it would be best to take things slow and not flaunt the relationship too much.

Not telling the guys too much about Laura worked well though, almost everyone was too busy trying to figure out what was going on with OC and Maddie to care about other people's personal lives. It was frustrating, because only a few people knew that Maddie was pregnant, and whoever did was sworn to secrecy. Robbie remained a go between for the two, although he wasn't too sure how he got that position because OC didn't really even consider Robbie a friend.

The day before the team was leaving for Europe, Robbie was in his room packing when someone knocked at the door. The second he opened it, Jimmy and Mark began talking so fast, Robbie could hardly understand them.

"Slow down, and take a breath," Robbie said. Once they stopped talking, he continued. "Now in English, one at a time."

"Maddie's leaving," Mark told him. Jimmy continued with an explanation.

"She's so fed up with Jack and his little game, she's going back to Boston."

"What? When?" Robbie asked, hoping she wasn't serious.

"Tomorrow, when we leave."

"I don't believe it," Robbie said.

"I do. Jack's been playing his game too long. I think someone should knock some sense into him," said Jimmy. "He's really hurting Maddie." Robbie knew OC was hurting Maddie. It was pretty clear when she started crying almost every time Robbie tried to comfort her. And Robbie wasn't getting through to OC, which he then explained to Jimmy.

"Rizzo and I have been trying to get him to talk to her. He's too stubborn and into himself to admit he's wrong."

"That's why we don't take no for an answer," said Jimmy.

The three guys decided to do everything they could to keep Maddie from leaving. Robbie for one, thought they were too cute of a couple to have their relationship thrown away like that. Especially when it was due to OC being a jerk.

Just after Jimmy and Mark left, Robbie remembered that he was supposed to go out with Laura that night. Being the last time he would see her for a couple weeks, they made plans to see each other. But Robbie knew he had to be at the bar that night. He called Laura to explain and call off their date.

"Hey Laura, it's me," Robbie said after she answered the phone.

"Calling to remind me about our date?"

"Actually, change is the word I should use."

"Change?"

"Something came up with the team and I have to be with them tonight."

"Oh, okay," Laura said, without much emotion, though she was disappointed. "What happened?"

"Well, Maddie, that's OC's girlfriend-"

"I know who she is," Laura said, a little irritated, but careful to hide it as much as she could.

"Well, they had a huge fight and she wants to go back to Boston instead of going to Europe. All of the guys are trying to get her to stay here, so we're going out to convince her. Considering only a few people know the exact circumstances, and I'm one of them, I need to be there." Robbie hoped Laura wouldn't be too mad. He felt bad, but he didn't know what else to do.

"That's fine," Laura said, trying to sound fine. "I hope everything goes okay tonight."

"I'm really sorry," Robbie apologized. "And now we really can't see each other before I leave." He was about to offer to take Laura to breakfast, but she responded before he got the chance.

"That's okay. Don't worry about it. It's only two weeks. I'll see you sometime after you get back," Laura said, completely but convincingly faking her lack of care.

"Okay, then. I'll see you in two weeks," Robbie said. He had hoped she wouldn't be mad, but he wished she would have cared more than she did. Robbie thought it sounded as though Laura barely cared at all that he was leaving. He knew he would miss her, but it didn't sound like she would miss him too much, which left him somewhat concerned. Robbie shook it off quickly though, because he had a lot to do before going out that night.

After Laura had hung up the phone, she progressively became more mad at Robbie. Since when was someone else, another girl at that, more important than her. Laura thought Maddie sounded like a nice person, but she was beginning to think she tied the guys on the team on a string around her finger. Robbie for one, always seemed to bend over backward to help her. Laura was getting a little sick of it. Why couldn't Maddie and Jack deal with their problems alone instead of getting Robbie and the other guys involved?

Laura then tried to give them the benefit of the doubt. After all, she didn't know Maddie, or what was going on between her and Jack. Laura did know one thing for sure though. She was definitely going to miss Robbie, and she couldn't wait for the next two weeks to be over.

A/N: Hope everyone enjoyed. Next chapter, Laura meets the rest of the guys on the team and Maddie. It will be up next week sometime. Pretty please (with sugar and cherry on top) review!


	15. Chapter 15

meadow567: I actually didn't know that. I've never actually left a theater part way through the movie. That's good to know though, if I ever do leave a movie. I won't have to flirt with the worker to get my money back, lol. I'm glad you like the conversations in the story. There's a few more this chapter, because they're important to this story too. Thanks for reviewing!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, I had to throw that part in there. I thought of it as I was writing because I needed a way to end their date. I'm glad you liked it. The old Laura would have slept around though. And this chapter has some of Laura and how she's trying to change and stuff. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

neonnbible: Glad you're caught up now. I hope moving went okay, it must have been a pain. I hope you like this chapter and thanks for the review!

Chapter 15

The team was finally back from Europe and everyone was tired out. Robbie was so happy to be home and couldn't wait to call Laura. Maddie was having the team over for pizza later on, and Robbie hoped Laura would join them. The past two weeks, he had been talking about her more with the guys and wanted Laura to hang out with the team more often, like Maddie and Gail did. After talking to her that afternoon, Laura told Robbie she would meet him at his room at six. While waiting for Laura, Robbie passed the time by calling his family to tell them about Europe, unpacking, and resting a little. Before he knew it, there was a knock at his door.

"Hey," Robbie said, greeting Laura with a quick kiss as he opened the door. "Come on in."

"How was Europe?"

"Most of it was great. I'm exhausted from the flight and the last two weeks in general though. It's good to be back."

"I'm glad you're back," Laura said with a smile. She didn't want to come right out and admit how much she missed him, because she didn't want to scare him, but by the end of the first week he was gone, she couldn't stop thinking about him.

"Want to head over to Maddie's? She made pizza and I'm starving."

"Sure. I actually already ate, but I really want to meet her and the guys."

"Okay. You look amazing tonight by the way," Robbie said, commenting on her outfit. Her short skirt and fitted shirt complemented her body features perfectly. "It almost looks like you're trying to impress someone other than me," he joked.

The truth was, Laura was trying to impress more than Robbie alone. Before Europe, Laura heard so much about Maddie and how much the guys loved her, that she wanted to make sure they liked her too. From the way Robbie described Maddie, Laura could tell that they had completely different personalities. If the guys liked Maddie so much, Laura thought they may not like her. Laura knew that if she looked hot and showed the guys that she knew how to have fun, they would probably like her too. After all, that's what worked for Laura in the past.

When they got to Maddie's room, Laura was introduced to the infamous Maddie. _This is Jack's girlfriend? _she thought. Maddie wasn't as pretty as Laura imagined based on how Jack went on and on about her, but she wasn't ugly either. Laura was a little surprised that Robbie thought she was pretty though. On more than one occasion, Robbie had mentioned in passing that Maddie was pretty, and that, along with Robbie constantly helping Maddie out sparked Laura's jealousy.

Upon meeting her, Laura also realized immediately that Maddie was one of the innocent good girl types that she never liked. Actually, Laura did like those girls, they were girls like Stephanie, but none of them ever liked girls like Laura. Laura still remembered the night Stephanie caught her with Nick and the words that Stephanie used to describe Laura were burned in her memory.

"_Girls like you don't get anywhere in life. I may not have guys lining up left and right now, but at least I won't end up alone the rest of my life. You'll end up alone and with no one, because girls won't want to be friends with alcoholics who party constantly and hit on their husbands, and guys will get tired of sleeping with sluts and settle down to have families with girls like me."_

Stephanie had said these words through angry tears, and it was a wake up call to Laura. For weeks, Laura couldn't stop thinking that there was some truth to what Stephanie said, but she was confused. After all, Laura didn't think she was a complete slut. Her relationship with Robbie was sort of proof of that. Most guys seemed to genuinely like Laura's personality too. She then came to the realization that Stephanie was only partially right and she figured Stephanie was jealous too. Laura knew she was prettier than Stephanie, and that she had better luck with guys.

Putting thoughts of Stephanie, and how much Maddie seemed to be like her aside, Laura walked in Maddie's room and felt pretty welcome. Jack said hi immediately, and the guys that she didn't know were quick to introduce themselves.

"I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Dave," Silky said, sticking out his hand. Laura remembered him from the night she ran into Robbie at the bar.

"Yeah, I remember you."

"I thought you would. Most girls don't forget me," he said with a wink.

"Okay, Laura, why don't we go over here," Robbie said jokingly, steering her in the opposite direction, away from Silky.

Robbie then left Laura with Mark and Bah when he went to get some drinks. He noticed Maddie pouring herself some orange juice and mixing it with seven up.

"Having a pretend drink, Maddie?" he asked with a smile. She smiled back.

"Yeah. I can't have the alcohol, but I can still have a good tasting mixed drink."

"You didn't mind that I brought Laura, do you?" Robbie asked a minute later. He asked when they first got there, but he wanted to make sure. Maddie really hadn't made much of an effort to talk to Laura, and he wasn't sure why.

"No, not all," was her response. She was just about to say something else when Christian and Verchota came up behind Robbie and interrupted them.

"Laura's hotter than I remember," said Verchota.

"Yeah, she is looking pretty good," added Christian. After the three guys talked about Laura for a minute, Robbie walked back over to where she was sitting.

After most of the guys were finished eating, they were sitting around talking and drinking. Laura was having a lot of fun, laughing and getting to know the guys. They seemed to like her and she was glad, but she couldn't help but wonder what Maddie thought about her. Laura barely saw Maddie all night, and she started thinking that Maddie had something against her. _She probably wrote you off as a slutty whore, _Laura thought, answering her thoughts. _It's not like your outfit is helping your cause. _Laura began wishing she wore something else, because even though the guys liked her, Laura wanted Maddie to like her. After all, Laura had a boyfriend, she wanted girl friends though.

"Why don't we make things interesting and play a game?" Laura then suggested, hoping to get everyone to play. Maybe she could get to know Maddie better that way and everyone could have a good time.

"Okay, what do you have in mind?" one of the guys asked.

"I don't know. Like 'Word Association' or 'Questions' or something." Only some of the guys knew the games Laura suggested so she began explaining them. In the meantime, she didn't even see Maddie leave the room. They had started playing a game, and after a few rounds, Laura excused herself.

"I'll be back guys. You can play this round without me."

"Come on, Laura. It's more fun with you here," commented Silky. "I like these games."

"You guys can play without me," Laura said, walking into the kitchen. She wondered why the guys thought it was so much more fun with her. Silky especially had been mentioning it all night. She began getting the impression that he didn't like Maddie too much. It was weird, because Laura wished she was more like Maddie.

"Hey Maddie, can I help with anything?" Laura asked, coming in the kitchen.

"If you want to. But don't feel you have to if you were in the middle of a game or anything." Maddie said. Laura could tell that Maddie had said this with a sort of undertone, though trying to sound nice. It was obvious to Laura that Maddie didn't really like her.

"I'll dry some dishes," Laura offered nicely. Once the dishes were dry, Laura went back into the other room with the guys, along with Maddie. It seemed like Maddie was avoiding drinking for some reason, because Rizzo suggested doing something that didn't involve drinking.

"It's fine Rizzo," Maddie said. "I have a drink right here. How about we play 'Drink while you think'?"

"Maddie," Bah groaned, who was sitting next to her. "That game again?"

"Shut up, Bah," Maddie said, playfully smacking him. "You only hate it cause you're bad at it."

"What's drink while you think?" Laura asked.

"Someone will say the name of a famous person, and the next person has to say another name starting with the same first initial as their last name started with. While you think, you drink," Robbie explained.

"For example, if I said Bobby Orr, Silky might say Mike Bossy," OC said, continuing the explanation.

"And if someone says a person with the same first and last initials, like Gilles Gilbert for instance, then the order is reversed," said Rizzo. "And you can't repeat names."

"The most important part is that on your turn, you keep drinking until you think of a person," Silky added.

"Who are those people?" Laura asked, understanding the game, but not having a clue who the people mentioned were.

"Hockey players," everyone in the room responded in unison. They started the game and most of the guys ended up saying hockey players at first, until they ran out of people to say. It was Bah's turn, and he needed a 'B' name.

"Barry Williams," he said after a few seconds of drinking. "Ha, stole yours," he told Maddie. Every other time they had played that game, Maddie had said Barry Williams at on point, who was her favorite actor. A few people later, the order was reversed and soon it was Maddie's turn again. She needed a 'B' name this time, and even though Bah already said Barry Williams, it only took her a split second to think of someone.

"Bill Baker," she said. This got Baker's attention and he looked up. "Ha, now it's your turn again," she said, turning to Bah.

"Baker's not famous," said Buzz, looking confused.

"Yeah he is. So many people know about you guys, and even more will later."

"That shouldn't count," complained Bah. After arguing for a few minutes, the game ended up ending. Everyone was tired anyway and the guys wanted to get rested up for practice the next day. Laura and Robbie went back to Robbie's room with Johnson. Laura had actually started thinking Robbie didn't have a roommate, because she never saw him there before, and was surprised to see his roommate there for once.

"If you guys want to get some sleep, I'll leave," Laura said, feeling bad because she didn't want to intrude.

"You can't drive home, Laur," Robbie said.

"I'm fine. I didn't have that much to drink," Laura assured him.

"You're not driving home. You had more than I think you realize," Robbie said. Laura thought it was nice the way Robbie was looking out for her. She did have three beers, all pretty close together, but she didn't feel that impaired. "Just stay here," said Robbie.

"Mac's right. It's not a good idea for you to drive," said Mark.

"Fine. I'll stay here if that'll make you two happy." Robbie unmade his bed and threw a pillow on the floor. He wasn't sure where exactly Laura stood on sharing the bed, but he didn't want to make her feel pressured.

Laura noticed Robbie putting a pillow and blanket on the floor, but wasn't sure why. She didn't think he would make her sleep on the floor, but she didn't know why he would either. Before Laura could ask, Mark ended up saying something, making things a little awkward.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting ready for bed."

"Are you sleeping on the floor?" Mark asked, unsure.

"Yeah," Robbie said, shrugging and stealing a quick glance at Laura to see her reaction.

"You're not sleeping in your bed?" Mark asked, looking confused.

"It's polite to let the lady sleep in the bed," Robbie said, trying to be funny.

"Why don't you sleep together?" Mark asked. Robbie looked at Laura again, hoping she would say something.

"Robbie, I think the bed's big enough for two people."

"Okay. But I wasn't sure if... I mean, I know you wanted, well..."

"I'll be back in a few minutes," Mark said, quickly leaving the room to leave the couple alone for a minute. He thought they needed a minute alone.

"Robbie, we can share the bed. We're just sleeping. It's no big deal. We've done a lot more than that before. Unless you don't want to sleep together."

"No I do," Robbie assured her quickly. Laura smiled.

"Thanks for letting me stay here tonight," Laura said, stepping towards Robbie.

"No problem. It's my pleasure," Robbie said closing the gap between them. Just before their lips touched, Laura backed away and let out a scream. Robbie jumped, startled at the scream and wondered what was wrong. Instantly, Mark also came in the room, thinking something was wrong.

"There's a huge spider on the wall!" Laura said, pointing and obviously scared. Robbie and Mark both looked where Laura was pointing and saw the 'huge' spider. It was actually a normal size. Almost as if the spider heard them, it crawled down the wall and onto the floor. Laura ran up onto the bed and stood on it, so she wasn't standing on the floor with the spider.

Apparently, Laura's scream had caught the attention of some of the other guys too, because Rizzo, Silky, and Bah came running to the room to see what was going on.

"Kill it! Kill it!" Laura shrieked. Robbie and Mark were watching the spider and began laughing, as did the other guys watching the scene unfold. "Step on it!" Laura yelled again. Robbie decided to torture his girlfriend a little first.

"But then I'll get spider guts on my shoes."

"Someone please kill it," Laura said, pleading with them.

"Aw, but it's so cute," Silky joked. The spider started crawling towards the bed now, making Laura more hysterical.

"Robbie, kill it!" she yelled, sounding angry.

"Laura, it's just a spider. It won't hurt you. Here, I'll even pick it up and prove it." Robbie wasn't really serious, but he bent down to see what Laura would do.

"Stop it. Please kill it, please," Laura said, now practically in tears. Robbie could tell she was upset and had enough fun, so he stepped on it.

"Your boyfriend's a hero," said Bah sarcastically, as Robbie cleaned up the spider's remains with a tissue.

"You better be getting a favor for that, Mac," Silky commented.

"Silky's right. For killing that spider, you deserve some serious action," added Rizzo.

"I never thought about that guys. Thanks," said Robbie. "Now, what can you ever do to repay me?" Laura knew Robbie was kidding and decided to play along.

"Are you asking for sexual favors in return for killing the spider?"

"Maybe."

"Well, you don't get anything. A kiss, maybe."

"That's it?"

"Look at it this way, baby. If you didn't kill the spider, it would have taken me so long to forgive you that you may never get any ever again."

Ten minutes later, Robbie and Laura were both ready for bed and Mark left the room for a few minutes. Since they were alone, Laura decided to ask him about Maddie.

"So, how many bad things have you told about me?" Laura asked, joking, unsure of the best to bring the subject of Maddie up. "Because Maddie obviously doesn't like me."

"She likes you."

"Um, hello. Where were you all night? She barely talked to me, and she only played that one game with us that she suggested. When I went to help her in the kitchen, she barely said one word too."

"Well, I don't know why she didn't talk to you, but she didn't drink because she can't." Laura gave Robbie a confused look before he continued. "Maddie's like four months pregnant." Laura's eyes went wide and her jaw dropped, that being the last thing she expected to hear.

"No way!"

"She is, really."

"I can't believe it. I know I don't know her that well, but she seems so . . . " Laura stopped, not knowing how to word what she wanted to say without it coming out as insulting.

"Perfect?" Robbie finished for her.

"Yeah," Laura agreed. She did think Maddie seemed innocent and angelic from the little she knew about her.

"When I found out, I was shocked," Robbie added. "Personally, I thought Maddie was too much of the 'good girl' type to be having sex, let alone get pregnant." Robbie immediately backed himself up by adding, "Not that I've given that a lot of thought or anything." Laura smiled. "And her being a 'good girl' is not necessarily a bad thing, but it's just different from the girls I'm usually around. Maddie's at the opposite end of the spectrum from other girls."

"Yeah, wilder girls like me, I presume."

"Not that that's a bad thing either," Robbie assured her, not wanting to make her mad.

"Well, that's definitely a surprise," Laura said, beginning to talk about Maddie's pregnancy again. "Especially because no one mentioned the whole night. Does everyone know?"

"Yep."

Mark came back in the room then and Robbie and Laura decided to lie down and get some sleep. A few minutes later, they were both lying on their right sides, facing the door, and Robbie had his arm around Laura's waist. He partially sat up and rested his head on his elbow, so he could see a little of Laura's face. Even in the dark room, he could tell her eyes were open. After a minute, Robbie realized that Laura was staring at the wall where the spider was a short time before. He assumed she was still a little on edge from the spider. Robbie had no idea how arachnophobic she was until that night. He decided to tease her a little more.

Very softly, Robbie moved her shirt and lightly grazed the bare skin at her waist with his fingertips, making a crawling motion. She didn't notice at first so then Robbie grabbed her waist harder and squeezed it whispering loudly in her ear.

"Spiders!" This caused Laura to jump and then she turned to face him.

"You think my fear of spiders is pretty funny, don't you?"

"Just a tad," Robbie said, not being able to help laughing. "I'm sorry," he said, then apologizing.

"I'll leave this room," Laura threatened. "I'm sure Silky wouldn't mind the company." Laura knew Silky liked flirting with her and if the circumstances were different, Laura guessed that Silky wouldn't hesitate at making a move on her.

"Okay, okay. I'll behave. I promise," Robbie said, giving her a scout's honor sign.

"Let's go to sleep now," Laura whispered.

"Will you close your eyes?" Robbie asked. "Or are you going to stare at the wall until you fall asleep?"

"I'll close my eyes."

"You can face me if you want. That way you won't see anymore spiders, even if they are there."

"I don't know," said Laura, beginning to get settled facing Robbie. "I might prefer waking up to the sight of a spider."

"Ouch. What an insult," said Robbie, pretending to be hurt. "I thought for sure I was better looking than a hairy, scary spider."

"Eh, I don't know. That's a close call. You might win by a narrow margin though," said Laura giving Robbie a quick kiss on the lips. "Thank you for killing the spider."

"Your welcome," Robbie said, before they both closed their eyes and drifted off to sleep.

A/N: What'd you think? Hit that little button down there and let me know! Next chapter will be up next week, and that one will have some drama...


	16. Chapter 16

meadow567: I always vacuum spiders up. If they're on the wall and I use the tube thing, I always look inside after to make sure I can't see it in the tube. I don't know why, because I know it got vacuumed up, but it's just something I _have_ to do, lol. Thanks for the review and enjoy the chapter!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, I'm so scared of spiders too. Last year I was in Florida and there was a huge spider in our hotel room. And I'm not exaggerating. It was a giant crab spider, and was literally the size of my palm. They gave us a different room because they didn't know how to kill it! I was paranoid the rest of the time though. Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope you like the chapter.

miracle fan 9245: Thanks for the review! There will be a lot more Mac and Laura to come! Enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 16

The next morning, Laura woke up very comfortably wrapped in Robbie's arms, and sensed eyes on her. She looked over to see Robbie awake and smiling at her.

"Have you been awake long?" Laura asked, wondering how long he had been staring at her.

"Maybe like, five minutes or so."

"Okay," Laura said, relieved it wasn't that long. Robbie then laughed a little.

"Does knowing that I watch you sleep creep you out or something?" he asked as if reading Laura's thoughts.

"Sort of," Laura said honestly.

"Get used to it," he said and kissed the top of her head. Laura let his words sink in, 'Get used to it,' and she wondered what that meant exactly. Robbie never explained, because he climbed out of bed and offered to make Laura breakfast.

"You cook?" Laura asked. "You get more amazing by the day."

"I'm not offering a five star meal here, but I can make some damn good toast," Robbie said with a smile.

"Toast sounds great."

After Laura and Robbie finished eating breakfast and getting ready for the day, Robbie still had a half hour before practice. Robbie turned on ESPN to watch sports highlights, and Laura sat on the bed next to him. She tried to get his attention but was failing miserably, so next Laura began kissing his neck gently.

"Mmm, Laur. You know I'm trying to watch sports."

"Go ahead," Laura said, as if she wasn't doing anything, but moving her lips to his shoulder now.

"You're making it really difficult."

"Well, if I'm breaking your concentration, that's not my fault. It's yours for not being able to focus," Laura said, continuing to kiss him and started sucking on his neck harder.

A few seconds later, Robbie grabbed the remote and turned the tv off, now completely focusing on Laura. As Robbie pulled Laura closer, she began kissing Robbie on the lips. They slid down on the bed into a laying position, and after a few minutes, Robbie rolled over on top of Laura and sat up, straddling her waist. He then pushed up Laura's shirt to the bottom of her bra and leaned down to kiss her stomach, softly mumbling "I love you." Just as Laura was about to respond, the door opened and a voice interrupted them.

"Rise and shine! It's a beautiful-" Mark began before he saw Robbie and Laura. "Sorry, I thought you two were still asleep," he said, embarrassed as Robbie quickly got off Laura and Laura pulled down her shirt.

"That's okay," Robbie said. "Umm, I have to go anyway. See you later, Laur." Robbie gave Laura a quick kiss and left the room quickly, before Laura even got a chance to say good-bye back.

"I'm sorry," Mark said again after Robbie left. "I didn't mean to ruin your moment or whatever. Mac sure left in a hurry. I hope he's not too mad at me."

"No, I don't think he's mad," Laura said, realizing that he was probably more embarrassed at what he said. Laura felt really bad that she didn't say anything in response to the 'I love you.' It's not like she had the time though. Laura hoped Robbie didn't regret saying it, but at the same time, she was secretly happy she didn't have to respond. She would have said it back, but Laura wasn't sure Robbie even really meant it. In the heat of the moment, he could have accidently let it slip out, and if he didn't really mean it, Laura would have been embarrassed saying it back. Laura did begin hoping that he meant it though.

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Later that day at practice, Robbie spent a lot of time thinking about Laura and what he had said earlier that morning. Although he had really strong feelings for Laura, and even thought he was beginning to fall in love, he didn't mean to tell her so soon. Robbie had no idea how she felt, and he didn't want to scare her away. Coming to the conclusion that it would be best to pretend he never said anything, Robbie pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind and promised himself that he would wait for Laura to say something before he brought it up again.

Robbie overheard some of the guys talking in the locker room after practice and suddenly got a great idea. They were talking about fun things they used to do as kids.

"Does anyone have bread that they don't want?" Robbie asked.

"A bunch of college aged hockey players . . . wanting to give away food? And bread at that? I don't think so," Bah said. Robbie sighed as Maddie walked in the room.

"Maddie, do you have any bread that you don't want?"

"Bread?" she asked, as if it was the weirdest question ever.

"Yeah, like the stuff you eat," Robbie said sarcastically.

"Now he's asking a pregnant chick if she wants to give away food," Verchota mumbled to Bah, loud enough that Robbie heard him.

"I'll check," said Maddie, however very non-committally.

After raiding refrigerators late Friday night, Robbie came up with a two and a half loaves of bread all together. Mark asked what he was doing, but Robbie refused to give him any clues.

Saturday morning, Robbie called Laura early and told her that he was picking her up at eleven that morning. Even after Laura begged, Robbie wouldn't tell her where they were going. Once they started driving Robbie still wouldn't tell her.

"If you keep whining, or guessing, I'll blindfold you until we get there," Robbie jokingly threatened.

"Then I'll whine even more."

"Then I'll tape your mouth shut."

"I'll still find a way to annoy you," Laura promised.

"Then I'll put you in the trunk."

"If you do that, I'll kick out your tail light and get you pulled over and arrested," Laura threatened. "And I won't bail you out of jail," she added in a pouty tone.

"Then I guess it's a good thing we're here," Robbie said, pulling in a parking lot.

"Now will you tell me where we are?"

"Where does it look like we are?"

"A deserted parking lot," Laura answered boldly. Robbie looked at her and raised his eyebrows. Laura smiled. "I'm joking. Sort of. We really are in an empty parking lot."

"Good, we're all alone then," Robbie said in a suggestive tone, wiggling his eyebrows. Laura giggled.

"Okay, so what are we doing here?"

"I brought you here to make-out. Isn't that what all the cool kids do?"

"No."

"Come on. Didn't you do that in high school?"

"No," Laura answered completely honestly.

"Okay . . . well, I was joking anyway. Get out though. We're taking a little walk."

Robbie grabbed a big bag out of the back seat with one hand, and his other hand linked with Laura's. They stopped next to a small lake. Robbie pulled a blanket out of the bag and laid it out. He then sat down and pulled Laura onto the blanket with him.

"Are you hungry?"

"Yeah," Laura answered. Robbie dug around in the bag for a minute, and pulled out sandwiches, apples, and cookies.

"You made lunch?" Laura asked, visibly impressed.

"Yep," Robbie said with a grin. They ate lunch and once they were done, Laura laid down on the blanket on her back.

"I'm stuffed. Those cookies were amazing. Who made them?"

"Me." Laura gave him a questioning look. It was obvious she didn't believe him. "Okay, my mom. But I had a lot left so instead of sharing them with the team, I wanted to share them with you."

"You only shared them with me cause that way you'd get more."

"Well, maybe that was part of it," Robbie said laughing. "Now I have something else for us to do, so get up."

"What?"

"Just get up."

"You're just full of surprises aren't you?" Laura asked, sitting up.

"Yep." Robbie pulled bags of bread from the bag next.

"What are you, friggen' Mary Poppins?" Laura asked, in awe of everything that had been in the bag. Robbie just laughed as Laura looked in the bag to see what else was inside. "So what's the bread for?"

"Company," Robbie said, looking over to the lake where ducks were gathering. It almost seemed like they could tell they were about to be fed.

"We're feeding them?" Laura asked, her eyes lighting up. Robbie nodded and handed her some bread. As they began throwing bread to quacking ducks, Laura said, "This is awesome! I haven't done this since I was five."

"Yeah, it is fun."

"Oh, look at the cute baby duck. Robbie, give that one some food," Laura said, pointing. Robbie tried, but a bigger duck got to it first. "You jerk!" Laura yelled at the duck, making Robbie laugh.

"You just called a duck a jerk. Do you think he actually understood you?"

"Yes," Laura responded. Then she began talking to the duck again. "Go away, stupid duck. It's not nice to steal food from a baby." Laura then waited for a minute as the duck began swimming in search of food elsewhere. She then threw more bread right to the baby. "There you go. Eat up little ducky." Robbie smiled at Laura's cuteness.

The two continued feeding the ducks until their bread was gone. They then sat on their blanket for a while longer, laughing and joking around, and making out too, of course. By almost three in the afternoon, they were ready to leave.

"So . . . we better get going," Robbie said, leaning over Laura, who was on her back and looking up at him. Staring into his eyes, Laura realized exactly how she felt about Robbie and really wanted to tell him.

"Robbie, I lo-" Laura stopped before she said it. "I loved our picnic today and I had an amazing time," she said, successfully catching herself.

Robbie was thinking Laura might say she loved him, and when she didn't, he was a little disappointed. Despite his disappointment, he smiled and said, "I had an amazing time too." Robbie then kissed her and then they cleaned up and walked to Robbie's car, where they were greeted by geese.

"What the hell?" Robbie said out loud.

"I think they missed the memo that we're out of food," Laura said.

"Geese can be such a pain. And they crapped on my car," Robbie groaned.

"Bigger problem . . . they're blocking my door!" Laura exclaimed.

"Oh well. I guess you're stuck here," Robbie joked. Then he got serious. "Here, give me the blanket," Robbie said, taking the blanket which Laura offered to carry. "I'll try to get them away while you run to the car. Shut the door as soon as you get in."

Robbie was partly successful in getting the geese to clear out of Laura's way, but before she could get in, they quickly surrounded her again. Laura screeched.

"They're like pecking at me! Robbie, help!" Laura was jumping up and down, screaming and trying to shoo them away. Robbie began laughing hysterically, unable to help Laura. Laura began laughing too, and she was backed up against the car door and not able to do anything. The geese were still surrounding her. "What do I do?" Laura asked, still laughing.

Finally, Robbie and Laura got the geese to move away from the car so they could get in. They shut the doors, and looked at each other and began laughing again.

"My God, geese are stubborn," Robbie said.

"Ya think? They're like . . . " Laura just stopped and laughed again. "They wouldn't leave me alone."

"I don't blame them. They know good-looking girls when they see them," Robbie commented, getting a smile in return from Laura. "Better geese than spiders though," he added.

"You bet," said Laura.

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Over the next two weeks, Robbie had practice or a game almost everyday and at night he either went out with the guys or with Laura. The 'L' word had not been mentioned since the morning Robbie had said it. Laura still figured that Robbie would say it again if he had really meant it the first time, and at the same time, Robbie still figured that Laura would say something if she felt the same way.

Along with spending time with Robbie, Laura really liked being around the guys on the team too, but most of the nights the guys all went out together, Laura had to work at the station. That was the one thing that sucked about being an intern. Terrible hours. Fortunately, she had off a couple of nights in late September, and she was excited because she was finally able to hang out with the team again. Robbie told her the guys loved having her around, because she was fun to be with, and now Laura felt increasing pressure to live up to her fun, outgoing image. After Robbie picked her up at eight, they headed over to the bar.

That night, only about five other guys went, but it was still fun. Shortly after Robbie and Laura got there, and everyone got drinks, they started playing a game called 'Truth.' Laura was having a lot of fun playing, and it was a good way to really get to know everyone there.

On her turn, she said, "I have a heart-shaped birth mark on my side." Now the guys had to decide whether they thought it was true or not, and whoever was wrong would have to drink.

"I'm going with true," said Rammer.

"Me too," said both Silky and Verchota.

"False," said Rizzo.

"You do know the rule about proving things that can be proven, right Laura?" Silky asked with a grin. "You'll have to show us if it's true."

"Shut up," Robbie said, smacking him and laughing a little. "It's false."

"You sound confident," Rizzo commented.

"I am. Of all people, I think I would know if she had a heart-shaped birth mark," Robbie responded, clearly implying that he would have seen it.

The guys all looked at Laura before she answered, "It's true."

"Sure you'd know, Mac," commented Rizzo sarcastically, before taking a drink.

"What? Since when?" Mac asked Laura, shocked.

"Since I was born, Robbie," she said in a duh tone. The guys all laughed and Robbie took a drink, trying not to look too mad about getting it wrong.

After a several rounds, when it was Laura's turn again, Silky started teasing Robbie.

"Is that true or not?" Silky asked him, after Laura made a statement about her parents being divorced.

"Um . . . false," Robbie answered, trying to sound as confident as possible. In actuality, Robbie had no clue whether it was false or not. He had never met Laura's parents, and they didn't talk about their families much. After playing the game that night, Robbie began to realize that there were a lot of things that he didn't know about Laura. Laura got a lot wrong about him too, but he noticed that it didn't seem to bother her.

"In that case, I'm gonna go with true," said Silky, pulling Robbie from his thoughts. "Cause you've gotten almost everything about Laura wrong so far." Everyone looked at Laura, waiting for the answer.

"Drink up Silky, it's false," she said. No one noticed, but Robbie breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he got something about his girlfriend right.

Laura noticed that Robbie didn't seem to be having much fun playing the game. He looked sort of sad or mad about something. At first, she just thought that he might have just had a long day and was maybe tired.

"Do you want to get out of here?" Laura whispered to him as the other guys continued playing.

"I don't care. You're having fun."

"We can leave. I'm sure there are other more fun things that we could be doing," Laura said suggestively, although she was only trying to cheer him up by saying that. She knew he wasn't in the mood. Robbie didn't answer her, so she said, "Just let me finish my beer and we'll go." A few minutes later, Robbie and Laura said their good-byes and went back to Laura's room.

"Want to stay for a while?" Laura asked when they got there.

"No. I think I'm gonna get going."

"Are you okay?" Laura finally asked. Now she knew that he wasn't tired. If he was, he would have mentioned it. Instead, Robbie barely talked to her the whole way to her apartment.

"I'm fine," Robbie said cooly.

"I don't believe you."

"Good," was Robbie's short response.

"Will you please tell me what's wrong? I'm beginning to think you're mad at me, but I'm not sure why."

"I'm not mad at you."

"Then why aren't you talking to me?"

"Because I have nothing to say."

"Fine," Laura said firmly, knowing she wasn't getting anywhere. "I'll talk to you tomorrow." Laura got out of his car and slammed the door, making it known that now she was a little mad too.

As soon as the door was shut and Laura was inside, Robbie lowered his head to the steering wheel and hit it lightly. _Why am I so stupid?_ Robbie wondered, as he then drove away.

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After practice the next day, Robbie decided to drive over to Laura's and apologize. He was still a little mad about the night before, but he should have talked to her about it instead of making her mad by pretending nothing was wrong. Robbie decided that he would be honest about why he was upset the night before.

Robbie didn't even think about her not being home before he got there, so he was a little relived to see her car. After waiting at her door for a few minutes she answered it. Robbie assumed that she knew it was him, because she didn't have a smile on her face like she normally would.

"Hey Laura."

"Hi."

"I'm sorry about last night. I was having a bad night, and I really didn't want to talk about it."

"Okay," Laura said. She was hoping he would want to talk now, but she didn't want to bring it up again. Laura knew Robbie's bad night had something to do with her, but she was still completely clueless as to what she did.

"Can we talk now?" Robbie asked.

"Sure, come on in," Laura said, opening her door wider for Robbie to step inside. They sat down next to each other on the couch before Robbie began.

"This might sound really stupid, but the game was making me mad," Robbie started. "It made me realize that I don't know anything about you. I've known you for like two years, and I know you as well as the guys that met you two weeks ago."

"You know me better than the other guys," Laura said sympathetically. She wasn't offended by him not knowing those little things about her. Robbie shook his head and explained.

"I never knew that you had a heart-shaped birthmark, or that one time you dyed your hair black on a dare. Or that you're allergic to tomato seeds."

"Those aren't things I go around publically broadcasting, Robbie. The point to the game is telling little known facts that may or may not be true."

Robbie then continued with something else he learned during the game, trying to make a point. "I never even knew that there was a possibility that your parents were divorced."

"There's not. They have a great relationship."

"Yeah, but I wouldn't know, because I've never even met them," Robbie said with an edge and his voice becoming a little loud.

"Fine, do you want to meet my parents or something?" Laura shot back, not knowing why Robbie was making a big deal out of this.

"That's not the point, Laura! You don't know me that well either. There were plenty of things you guessed wrong. Do you even care?" Robbie said, now clearly yelling.

"Robbie, the whole point of a relationship is getting to know one another over time."

"Over time? We've been together on and off for two years!"

"Exactly! On and off. For those two years, we didn't have much of a relationship. It was completely based on sex!" Laura yelled back.

"I didn't hear you complaining!" spat back Robbie. Both Robbie and Laura were quiet for a minute, not really knowing what else to say. Robbie finally spoke up. "I think I'm gonna go. I have better things to do right now than try to figure out what the hell you want."

"What's that supposed to mean? What_ I_ want? What about you? How am I even supposed to know where you stand? After all, half the time you seem to care more about Maddie than me," Laura said, bitterly. She instantly regretted saying that, knowing she shouldn't be blaming other people for their problems. Robbie and Laura always fought, and it was their own fault and lack of commitment that caused the problems.

Robbie shook his head and said, "It was a mistake even coming over here." Robbie walked out of Laura's room and slammed her door shut, really mad at Laura and what she said. Mainly, he was mad at the whole situation, and wondered why he and Laura repeatedly ended conversations in arguments. Maybe no matter how different they tried to make their relationship, some things would never change.

A/N: Hope everyone liked it. Please review, they make me really happy!


	17. Chapter 17

meadow567: Sorry I had to make you wait another week. But this is a long chapter, so maybe it will make up for it. I'm glad you liked it though and thanks for the review!

NellieBly413672: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. And they'll say those three little words (and mean it) soon, I promise. Thanks for reviewing!

neonnbible: Thanks! I hope you like this chapter too, and thanks for the review!

Bluehaven4220: Thanks for reviewing. Robbie's just sort of upset because he's afraid that if they don't talk and stuff and then learn things about each other, they'll end up breaking up again. And that ducks and geese point was interesting. I actually wasn't really thinking about that when I wrote it, but it does sound! Thanks again for the review!

A/N: This is my longest chapter yet! The middle chunk may seem like filler, but it's important in showing that Laura can still be the same girl she was in college. After this chapter, the story's really going to start moving along quickly, and the chapters will still be long, but they will have more stuff happening in them, if that makes any sense. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys and please review!

Chapter 17

_previously . . . _

_Robbie shook his head and said, "It was a mistake even coming over here." Robbie walked out of Laura's room and slammed her door shut, really mad at Laura and what she said. Mainly, he was mad at the whole situation, and wondered why he and Laura repeatedly ended conversations in arguments. Maybe no matter how different they tried to make their relationship, some things would never change._

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Laura realized how pissed off Robbie was, and didn't want to make the mistake of letting him leave angry. She chased him down the hall and caught up to him just before he was about to walk outside.

"Wait, Robbie," Laura said, and grabbed his arm. "Don't leave." He stopped and looked at Laura. She bit her bottom lip before continuing. "I shouldn't have said that. I know you're friends with Maddie. And I'm sorry we don't know each other better. I guess we should after two years, but you have to admit, this is the first time we've had a real relationship. What we had before, wasn't. I mean, how can I take a guy home and explain to my parents that you're my boyfriend, for now, but really it's only for convenience," Laura said. She smiled and tired to lighten things up, but Robbie saw her statement a bit differently.

"So I was 'convenient'?" he asked, annoyed.

"That's not what I meant," Laura said, trying to defend herself. "Let's at least be honest that we weren't in it for the long term."

"I was."

"Not every time we were together. Even if we thought we were, looking back, we obviously weren't, because we were only in it physically and we never talked about anything."

"Well, what are we doing now? Because we don't talk now either. Are we going to look back again and think that we were just having fun?"

"I hope not," Laura said seriously. "I want this to work. That's why I didn't want to jump into the physical aspect right away. And I'm sorry we don't talk enough," Laura said. Then she half mumbled, "I guess I just don't want to get in too deep and have my heart broken."

"That's why we're taking things slow."

"But a minute ago, you said that you were mad because you haven't met my parents after two years and you don't know anything about me," Laura pointed out, very confused as to what Robbie wanted exactly.

Robbie sighed and rubbed his hand over his face, as if he was as confused as he was making Laura. He then said, "I know. I guess we do talk more than before, but I know we still have some serious communication issues. I'm just afraid that's going to lead to disaster again."

"I guess we'll both have to try harder then."

"Yeah. Speaking of which, I should have talked to you last night."

"It's okay. I'm just glad you talked to me now," Laura said with a smile, hoping things were now okay between them. Honestly, she was still a little confused as to whether Robbie thought they were moving to slow or not, but she tried not to think anymore about it.

"So Laura, do you really have a heart-shaped birth mark?"

"Yeah." Laura smiled, realizing that obviously Robbie felt better now. "Do you want proof?" she asked suggestively.

"Yeah, I think I do," Robbie said, walking closer to her. Laura pushed him away when he was within reaching distance.

"You'll have to wait for that, mister."

"I'm just mad that I didn't find it myself. Everyone else knows about it now. It would have been nice if that was a little something between the two of us, or at least if I knew about it first."

"Well, if it's any consolation, you'll be the first, and only one, to see it," Laura offered, hoping that would satisfy Robbie enough.

"I think I can live with that," Robbie said, leaning in to kiss Laura. Laura stopped him.

"Let's go back inside before we continue," Laura said. Robbie nodded and followed Laura back to her room.

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The next night, Robbie called Laura after practice to let her know the plan for that night. He told her that he would pick her up around seven to head to the bar with the team.

Mark and Bah were driving with them to the bar and after Robbie picked Laura up he told her, "You're going to be the only girl tonight."

"Maddie's not going?"

"Nope. I guess she wanted to give us 'guy time' or whatever, but the guys all wanted you to come."

"Okay," Laura said. For as much as she liked being around the guys, she also wanted to get to know Maddie better, but aside from the night at Maddie's room, she hadn't seen her.

The four met the rest of the team at the bar. Almost everyone was there that night, ready to have a good time. Robbie, Rammer, Rizzo, and Mark quickly began a game of pool, while Laura was talking and laughing at the table with Silky, Bah, OC, and Pav. The rest of the guys decided to try to pick up some girls standing around the bar area.

"What the hell are you drinking?" Silky asked Verchota, as he walked back over to the table with a drink in hand.

"A Hurricane or something like that," Verchota responded, shrugging. "I guess a Long Island Iced Tea was too expensive."

"You girl."

"What?"

"That is such a girl drink. Why the hell did you get one of those?" Silky asked him.

"It's not mine. Some chick over there told me to give it to you."

"I hate those," Silky complained, taking it anyway. "Who's it from?" Verchota pointed to an average looking girl near the bar. "Ugh, she's cheap and ugly," Silky commented.

"Can I have her then? I think she's cute," Verchota said.

"Be my guest." Verchota left to go back to the bar and Silky handed the drink to Laura. "Here, I don't want it," he said.

"Thanks," Laura said, drinking some right away. "It's better than beer."

A little while later, Robbie was finished playing pool and came back to the table. Right away, he knew everyone was drunk, especially Laura.

"How many have you had, Laur?" he asked, sitting down in the empty chair next to her. Laura shrugged.

"She had several," OC responded for Laura. He was the most sober one at the table.

"Can you get me something else? I'm still thirsty," Laura said.

"How about water?" Robbie asked. Laura shook her head back and forth.

"I want one of those," she said, pointing to Silky's drink.

"Here, you can finish this," Silky said, handing her his drink. Robbie grabbed it before Laura could get it.

"Hey!" she said in protest.

"Hay is for horses," Robbie said. "What is this anyway?" he asked Silky. Laura suddenly interrupted.

"And grass is for cows!" she said, thinking they were playing a game.

Silky answered Robbie's previous question, ignoring Laura. "It's a Long Island Iced Tea."

"Are you stupid?" Robbie asked him. "She's already completely drunk, and you gave her a Long Island Iced Tea!"

"She's already had two. What's one more? Plus, you might be thanking me later," Silky said and winked.

"Bah it's your turn," Laura said, still thinking they were playing a game. Then she got excited. "Wait! Bah . . . like a sheep! Bah is for sheep!" she exclaimed. "But Bah isn't food, it's the noise," she added, with a somewhat puzzled look on her face. The guys just laughed at her.

"Like I haven't heard that before," Bah commented sarcastically.

"I have a joke," she announced. The guys looked at her, waiting to hear it. "What's brown and sticky?" She waited for a minute and said, "A Stick!" Laura began laughing uncontrollably, and the guys followed, not because the joke was funny, but because they thought Laura laughing at it was funny. Laura continued telling jokes, and the guys soon found out she was an awful joke teller, and because she was drunk, it was actually funny. After Laura told several stupid jokes, and forgot the punch lines to a few others, the other guys began telling jokes.

"I have one," Rizzo said. "Why did the blonde get fired from the M&M factory?" Everyone shrugged. "Because she was throwing all the W's away." They guys began laughing a little at Rizzo's joke, but Laura sat there with a confused look on her face.

"I don't get it," she finally said.

"Oh boy," said Rammer, hoping the only reason she didn't get it was because she was drunk.

"Why would you want to keep W's on M&M's? They're supposed to be M's," Laura said. The guys laughed harder.

"I guess the point about blondes is proven. We don't even need blonde jokes. We have our very own joke right here," said Silky. Laura thought this was a compliment and smiled. Robbie then decided to explain the joke to Laura.

"Laura, honey, a W is an M if you turn it upside down."

"But then the M&M would be upside down," Laura said, still not getting it. Robbie tried his hardest not to laugh, at her comment. Then he figured he would just let it go. It was obvious that Laura was too drunk to understand. "Yeah, I guess you're right," was all he followed with.

"Who wants to dance?" Laura asked loudly after she got bored of hearing jokes that she didn't understand. No one answered her so she stood up, almost falling over and grabbed Robbie's arm. "Let's go."

"In a minute, Laura," he said.

"Come on. Please?" she begged.

"Later," Robbie promised.

"Ugh," Laura pouted, and crossed her arms. Then she turned to Rizzo. "Rizzo, it looks like you want to dance. Let's go." Rizzo shook his head in an attempt to argue, but she dragged him over to the dance floor anyway. The guys all watched and laughed as Laura and Rizzo awkwardly danced. Rizzo clearly didn't want to be dancing, which made it that much funnier.

"Laura, I dare you to dance on the table next," Silky shouted over to her.

"Okay," she said, totally willingly. As Laura climbed on the table Robbie grabbed her and pulled her down. "Stop it! I'm trying to have fun."

"Laura, Silky was joking. He doesn't want you to dance on the table."

"Yeah, what I really want is a lap dance," he commented.

"Okay, fine," Laura said, walking over to Silky.

"He's joking about that too," Robbie said, grabbing her arm. "Let's sit down for a few minutes."

"No," she said, pulling away from Robbie and tripping over the chair leg in the process. She stood back up. "You never want me to have any fun."

"I just don't want you to do things that you regret tomorrow."

"You're a party pooper." Robbie rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, Mac. What a party pooper," Silky said, imitating Laura. The guys laughed. It was clear that they were enjoying Laura's drunken state. After a few minutes, the guys finally convinced Laura to sit down, but she only stayed there for a minute.

"I have to go pee," she announced, getting up from the table.

"I'll let the press know," Bah teased her.

"Are you gonna be okay?" Rizzo asked. He wasn't so sure letting her go by herself was a good idea. "Maybe Mac should go with you."

"I don't need supervision. Plus, he's a boy. They're not allowed in the girl's bathroom," she said, matter-of-factly.

"Why don't I just walk you there?" Robbie said.

"I'll be fine. I'm not even that drunk anymore," she said, starting to walk away. The guys watched her as she walked across the room. Laura wasn't walking straight at all, and she bumped into two people on her way.

"Oh yeah, it definitely looks like she's sobering up," OC said sarcastically.

"She's hilarious when she's drunk though," said Bah. "That's my entertainment for the year."

"We should get her drunk more often," said Verchota. "I think the only one who wouldn't appreciate that is Mac."

"I think she's funny when she's drunk. And I have no objection to her being drunk, but I don't want you guys egging her on either," Robbie said, looking directly at Silky.

"Hey, it was funny!" he said in defense. "At least I told her to give me a lap dance and not some stranger."

"Well, maybe next time you could ask her to give me, her boyfriend, a lap dance instead."

"Do I sense some jealously?" Silky asked Robbie.

"No."

"You're not afraid she'd give me one lap dance like it so much that she dumps you for me, right?"

"No, but I am afraid you might like it so much that you ask for more," Robbie said, joking back.

The guys saw Laura walking back to the table while rubbing her forehead.

"What happened?" Robbie asked, as she sat down in his lap.

"I got in a fight," was her response. She knew this would make Robbie flip out.

"What?!" he exclaimed. The other guys had shocked reactions too.

"Don't worry. It was only a fight with the bathroom stall door."

"Huh?" Robbie asked, confused.

"The door got stuck, so I pulled the bottom with my foot, and then the door swung open and hit me in the head. Now I have a boo-boo," Laura said, pointing to a small bump on her head.

"Will a kiss make it better?" Robbie asked sweetly. Laura nodded.

"Thank you."

"Want some ice?" OC asked.

"Okay, maybe a little."

OC went to the bar to get ice and Robbie then held it on Laura's head as she sat in his lap.

A little while later, some of the guys decided to head out because it was getting late. Robbie, Silky, Mark, Jimmy, Verchota, Bah, and Laura were still there. Laura got tired of the ice being on her head and she took it from Robbie.

As guys were talking, Laura got up and walked behind Mark. Robbie saw her and knew what she was going to do. Robbie nudged Silky to get his attention. Silky noticed too, and both guys tried not to give Laura away. She put a few ice cubes down Mark's shirt and immediately upon feeling the cold ice cubes, he straightened up and turned around.

"What the hell!?" he said, at first thinking it was one of the guys. Laura laughed along with the other guys. "Sorry, I thought it was one of them," he said, apologizing for yelling.

"Don't be sorry. She just put ice down your shirt. Laura deserves to be yelled at," said Bah. "I'd yell at her."

"Mark's too nice to yell at a girl though," commented Jimmy.

"Like you should talk. You wouldn't have yelled at her either," Mark pointed out. Jimmy shrugged.

"Probably not."

After Laura sat back down, Verchota tried to convince Mark to put ice down Laura's shirt. He wouldn't do it though. Finally, Verchota got up.

When he put a handful of ice cubes down Laura's shirt, she screamed.

"That was from Johnson," she told her. The guys laughed as Laura decided to give Verchota payback. She picked up a halfway full glass on the table and splashed him with the remainder of whatever was in it.

"I said that was from Mark!" Verchota said.

"Well, give that message to him then," Laura said. Verchota did exactly that. He picked up a glass and tossed its contents at Mark.

"That was my beer!" said Silky, throwing a french fry at him. Verchota just threw one back. After a minute, there was a full out war at their table. Jimmy and Mark protested that they would get in trouble, but they still took part. As they laughed at threw french fries and drinks at each other, the other people in the bar began looking at them, wondering what they were doing. Silky ended up backing into a chair and knocking it over, breaking it. Since they all became progressively louder, they didn't even hear the warnings to stop from the bartender. Laura picked up a ketchup bottle and pointed it at Bah. She squeezed it and he moved out of way. The ketchup ended up squirting on a waitress that had been standing behind them.

The guys all stopped what they were doing and looked in shock at the waitress who was also wearing a surprised expression. Laura then began laughing as she apologized.

"All of you, get out!" the bartender yelled. "You broke my chair and you're making a mess. You need to leave." The guys remorsefully began walking out, but Laura wasn't ready to leave.

"Are you gonna make us?" she challenged. Robbie exchanged glanced with Verchota who was standing next to him. They all knew Laura shouldn't have said anything.

"If you're not out of here in the next two minutes, I'm calling the cops. I have no patience for rowdy, immature twenty year olds."

"Then call them," Laura challenged. Silky walked up to Laura and grabbed her arm.

"Laura, let's go," Silky said seriously. "It's late anyway." She pulled her arm away. Laura was ready to start again with the bar tender.

"I'm sorry," Robbie began. "She's drunk. We'll get her out of here. Just don't call the cops. She doesn't know what she's saying."

"One minute and fifteen seconds," the bartender said, counting down the time they had to get out.

"Laura, let's go now!" said Robbie. Robbie, Verchota, and Silky were the only three guys left in the bar. Mark, Jimmy, and Bah had all been so afraid of Herb finding out, that they left in a hurry.

"You get her legs, I'll get arms," Robbie said to Silky. "Verchota, get the door."

Even though Laura was light, dragging her out of the bar was more difficult than they thought. She was flailing her body, almost causing them to drop her a few times. They finally succeeded in getting her outside though, before the bartender called the police.

"I'm never going back there again," said Verchota when they were on their way back to the dorms. "Especially not with that feisty girlfriend of yours."

"They probably won't even let us back in," said Robbie.

"We're lucky he didn't call the cops. Can you imagine what Herb would do if he found out that we were in jail?" said Silky. "Sorry, Mac, I was wrong about Laura being hilarious when she's drunk. That end to the night was far from hilarious."

"You'll be laughing about it tomorrow," Robbie pointed out.

"Someone's laughing about it now," said Verchota, talking about Laura who thought the whole situation was hysterical.

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"I bet you're feeling pretty good this morning," Robbie teased Laura when she woke up the next morning.

"I want to die," Laura replied, pulling the covers over her head. Robbie, who had been up and dressed for two hours walked over to the bed and pulled the covers down enough to kiss her head. "Why are you so cheerful this morning?" she asked.

"Unlike you, I didn't get completely wasted."

"My head hurts," she complained, pulling the covers over her head again. Robbie sat on the edge of the bed, next to her.

"Your whole head or your forehead?" he asked. Laura thought he was trying to be funny about something and taking the covers away from her head, she sneered at him. "I'm serious," he responded.

"No, you're being a wise ass," she told him. Then she said, "My whole head hurts."

"Oh, I figured the bump would hurt a little too," Robbie casually mentioned, assuming that Laura had no memory of hitting her head on the bathroom door.

"What bump?" she asked confused. Robbie explained her bathroom story, and Laura just groaned. "Oh God. I must have looked so stupid."

"That wasn't the only thing," Robbie said under his breath. He was debating whether to tell her the rest.

"What else happened?" she asked. Robbie retraced the events of the previous night, with the exception of almost getting arrested. "You were so entertaining," he said in conclusion.

"Well I'm glad you thought so, because I'm mortified. I think I'll just never get out of bed," Laura said, trying to pull the covers over her head once again. The more sunlight she could block, the better. Waking up with a hangover and bright sunlight shining in the window was a terrible mix.

"It could have been worse," Robbie said.

"How? I must have looked like a complete idiot."

"Look on the bright side. You're alive, no one got arrested, we didn't need to bail you out of jail, we're not-"

Upon hearing the 'bail you out of jail' portion, Laura threw down the covers, sat up, and said, "Bail me out of jail?!"

"Yeah, I mean the bartender was pissed, but he didn't take everything you said seriously, because you were drunk."

"Oh my God!" Laura said, throwing her head back on the pillow. Robbie laughed at her and further explained that part of the night. "I'm so sorry," Laura apologized when he was done.

"Don't worry about it. Like I said, we were all entertained."

"I almost got you arrested."

"But you didn't. The only thing I wouldn't want to go through again is getting thrown up on," he said with a laugh.

"I threw up on you?"

"Yeah. You missed the toilet."

"I'm so sorry," Laura said, for a lack of anything better to say. She felt really bad.

For the rest of the morning, Laura kept telling Robbie how embarrassed and sorry she was about everything that happened the previous night. She didn't remember a thing, but couldn't believe how stupid she thought she sounded. Laura was happy the guys at least thought she was funny, but she never wanted to let that happen again. At least not to that extent.

When Robbie left for practice, Laura decided to go home. She was still wearing her clothes from the night before, and since she didn't take a shower yet, she had awful bed head and her eye makeup was still smudged under her eyes, making her look like a raccoon. Walking down the hall, Laura hoped the guys had all already left and that she wouldn't run into anyone. Unfortunately, Laura didn't get her wish. Maddie was just coming out of her room when Laura was passing. Laura didn't want to ignore her, so she said hi.

"Hi," Maddie responded. Laura knew that Maddie probably thought she looked terrible, and she also knew that she wouldn't be leaving a very good impression, so she decided to explain.

"I had a rough night."

"Oh," Maddie said, very uninterested. Maddie didn't want to talk to Laura, and didn't care how rough a night she had. She actually thought that it was possibly Laura's twisted way of bragging.

"You should have come out with us," Laura told Maddie, trying to make conversation.

"Well, I thought it was important to let the guys have some time without me there. You know, having a girl constantly around must get annoying."

"I don't think they mind having girls around," Laura said. She knew Maddie was trying to be mean but being as nice as possible at the same time. Laura knew Maddie didn't like her.

"They all seemed to have fun though, even with me there."

"Well, I guess you're just a fun person," Maddie said, sort of sarcastically. "I'm going to be late. I need to go," Maddie said, quickly walking down the hallway and leaving Laura to stand at the elevator.

Laura really wished Maddie would give her a chance, but she was beginning to think things were hopeless. So far, Laura had tried everything to talk to her and be friendly. Laura began thinking that she might have to go out of her way to be friendly in order to get anywhere. She then mentally kicked herself. _I could have mentioned the baby._ _Maddie must love to talk about the baby and how excited she is, and if I would have mentioned that, maybe she would be a little more apt to have a real conversation with me._ With this thought, Laura decided that next time she talked to Maddie she would mention the baby and hoped that would work in sparking a real conversation.


	18. Chapter 18

meadow567: Thanks for the review, I'm glad you liked it. This chapter is long too, and hopefully just as good!

NellieBly413672: Glad you liked it. I would definitely dump a guy if they threw up on me too, lol. Thanks for the review!

neonnbible: Thanks, I wanted to make it really funny and Laura look stupid at some points too. Thanks for reviewing and enjoy the chapter!

bluehaven4220: Yeah, Laura's definitely making an effort. Even more so this chapter. Thanks for the review!

A/N: Okay, this is the chapter a lot of you are probably waiting for. Please review when you're done, feedback is greatly appreciated.

Chapter 18

On a Saturday morning in the beginning of October, Laura was just leaving Robbie's room when she heard crying coming from inside one of the dorms. Since there were no other girls on the floor other than Maddie, Laura assumed it had to be her, and she decided to see what was wrong. Although Maddie was smiling when she opened the door, Laura noticed her face was red and her eyes were a little puffy from crying.

"Hey. Are you okay? I heard crying and I thought this was your room, so I wanted to make sure everything was okay," Laura said lamely, thinking she sounded nosy and wishing she had a better explanation for being there.

"Uh yeah, thanks. I'm fine though," Maddie said. Laura looked past Maddie into her room and noticed clothes everywhere. "I was just trying stuff on," Maddie explained, when she saw Laura looking past Maddie. Laura realized that she must have been trying on clothes because she was getting the baby belly. Before she even knew what was coming out of her mouth she mentioned the baby.

"Oh. How's the baby?" Laura asked, then thought, _Damn, I should have said congratulations first. Way to go, Laur. You're excellent at this stuff._

"Great. Wait, who told you?" Maddie asked.

Then Laura realized her mistake even more. _Great, Maddie didn't even know that I knew about the baby, now I probably look really nosy. No wonder she doesn't want to be friends with me. I've done nothing but look stupid every time I talk to her._

"Robbie told me the other day. I hope you don't mind," Laura then said. Robbie had actually told her a while back, but Laura thought it was best to pretend she just found out recently.

"No, not at all." Maddie said with a smile. Laura couldn't help but wonder if it was fake.

"Did you need help with something?" Laura offered.

"No. I'm fine," Maddie said, just before tearing up again.

_Either she's a really emotional person, or the hormones are awful, _Laura thought. Walking over to Maddie, Laura put her arm around Maddie's shoulder and tried to comfort her.

After talking with Maddie another few minutes, Laura found out that none of Maddie's clothes fit anymore. Just as Laura suspected, Maddie was getting a still barely noticeable baby belly. On top of that, it was Maddie and Jack's one year anniversary, and she needed a dress. Since Laura didn't have any plans for the day, she offered to go shopping for maternity clothes with Maddie. When Laura asked, she wasn't even really thinking about doing it to try to get on Maddie's good side and become friends. Laura just offered because she felt bad for Maddie and thought shopping and hanging out with another girl would be fun. Laura couldn't remember the last time she went shopping with someone, and it had been even longer since that someone wasn't Robbie. Maddie finally agreed to go with Laura, although somewhat reluctantly.

"Are you excited about the baby?" Laura asked Maddie on their way to the mall. Laura had just realized that this was the perfect opportunity to try to become Maddie's friend.

"Yeah," was her reply.

"Have you gone for a sonogram yet?" Laura asked.

"I went a couple days ago."

"Do you have the picture?" Laura asked excitedly. She had only seen a sonogram picture once before, and it was of her brother when she was only five, so she couldn't remember what they looked like.

"Yeah," Maddie said, pulling the picture out and showing her.

"That's awesome. Is it a boy or girl or don't you know?"

"I don't know."

"Have you and Jack picked out names or anything yet?"

"No."

Laura realized that her attempts at having a conversation were getting no where. Maddie obviously didn't want to talk to her, because her answers were short and she lacked any enthusiasm when talking about the baby. Laura knew Maddie was excited about the baby, because Robbie told her, so Laura didn't understand why Maddie tried to hide her excitement.

After the two girls shopped for a while, Maddie suggested lunch to Laura's surprise. With the time they had spent together so far, Laura thought for sure that Maddie would want to leave as soon as possible.

"You're really lucky to have a guy like Jack," Laura said, trying to break their somewhat awkward silence.

"That's the first time I've ever heard that."

"Really?" Laura asked. Then Maddie explained how her family still thinks Jack Is just using her. Laura could definitely sympathize with that. Her family didn't even know Robbie, but she explained to Maddie that neither she nor Robbie had any intention on a serious relationship when they first met.

"How about now?" Maddie asked. Laura hesitated a few seconds before responding.

"It's scary because I'm falling in love with him," she finally admitted, then paused for a minute before adding, "Wow. I've never said that out loud before."

"Well, I'm glad to hear that you guys feel the same way about each other," Maddie commented.

"Really? He loves me too?"Laura asked with a smile.

Maddie nodded and said, "Don't tell him I told you though."

"I just never thought . . . I mean, he's said it, but I didn't realize he actually meant it." Laura remembered back to the day he said "I love you," a few weeks before. At the time, Laura thought he let it slip out, and since he hadn't mentioned anything since, she was almost positive he didn't mean it.

"Well, Robbie didn't tell me he loves you, but I can see it in his eyes when he talks about you," Maddie said.

"Oh," Laura said. She then admitted how she was feeling. "As much as I think I feel the same way, I'm scared. I've never, ever felt that way about someone." Laura was actually pretty positive she felt the same about Robbie, but she didn't want to mess things up again. Not when they were going pretty well.

After a few minutes of silent reflection on the conversation that just took place, Laura said, "You didn't like me at first did you?"

"Yeah I did," said Maddie, but Laura knew she was lying and called her on it.

"No, you didn't. I may be a blonde, but I'm not stupid," Laura said. then she laughed and added, "Well, I'm not most of the time."

"Well, I guess you weren't my favorite person," Maddie admitted.

"That's okay. I understand," said Laura. She told Maddie the girls never really liked her, because she was a flirt, and she really only had guy friends. Laura also told Maddie that she knew Maddie thought of her as a typical blonde, and she confessed that she was jealous of Maddie because the guys all seemed to really like her. Maddie then told Laura that she was actually jealous because Laura got so much positive attention from the guys.

Maddie went on to assure Laura that she liked her a lot more now. "I guess I just had to get to know you," she explained. After their conversation at lunch, Laura felt pretty good. They shopped for baby clothes after lunch, and the girls talked and laughed liked they were friends. Laura didn't want to assume that Maddie considered her a friend yet, but she knew Maddie tolerated her now, and hoped things were leading towards friendship.

Once the girls returned from shopping, Laura headed over to Robbie's room. Rizzo stopped her on her way there.

"What are you doing tonight, Laura?"

"Not a lot."

"Want to come over for dinner?" Laura assumed he meant with the team, but then remembered Robbie telling her about her dancing with Rizzo at the bar when she was drunk, and Laura decided to tease him a little.

"Sorry, Rizzo. I didn't mean for you to get the wrong impression. I was drunk. I was only dancing with you for fun."

Rizzo turned red. "I... no I, well I meant the team is coming over. I didn't get the wrong impression," he said, embarrassed for not making himself clear.

"I'm joking," said Laura. "I would love to come over." Then she added, "If I'm not banned from hanging out with you guys. You did hear about me almost getting arrested, right?"

"Yeah. Everyone knows about that," said Rizzo. "And I invited you because dinner in my room, and everyone on the floor is from the team, so no one will call the cops." Laura laughed.

"I'll see you later then."

"Bye, Laura," Rizzo said with a wave.

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Eating dinner with the team was fun, and Laura really liked Rizzo's cooking. He made spaghetti and meatballs, which was apparently his specialty. At first, she was a little hesitant, because the guys were making comments about the meatballs. She found out it was an inside joke though, even though they wouldn't explain it.

After the team dinner, Laura slept in Robbie's room. It was almost like she made a permanent residence there. She had slept there every night since their fight. Laura had really wanted to tell Robbie exactly how she felt because of the conversation she had with Maddie earlier, but lost the courage when she was about to.

The next morning, Laura and Robbie were on their way to breakfast when Maddie and Jack saw them in the hallway and asked to join them. Robbie noticed that something was up, but couldn't put his finger on it. Maddie seemed to be only using one of her hands for some reason. Robbie finally asked if she was okay. Laura then realized what was going on.

"Oh my God! I can't believe I didn't notice sooner!" Laura said. "Did you...?" Laura started then stopped, as Maddie smiled for Laura's conformation. "That's so exciting!"

"What's going on?" Robbie asked, very confused.

"Look at her hand, Robbie," Laura told him. He did, but still didn't notice. After he was told to look at her ring finger, he realized Maddie was sporting a diamond ring. Robbie finally figured it out. They got engaged.

"You two are getting married? Congratulations!" Robbie said, excited for them.

"Thanks," Jack and Maddie both responded.

Jack and Maddie left the table a few minutes later, needing to tell more people about their engagement. Robbie and Laura finished eating their breakfast.

"Hey Robbie," Laura said in between bites of toast. "Do you think we could spend some time alone together tonight?"

"Yeah sure," he said. Want to go out for dinner or something?"

"No, we can stay in. If Mark's around we can go to my apartment. I just want some alone time with my boyfriend," Laura said with a smile. She really hoped she got the nerve to tell him her feelings that night, and she figured that maybe if they were alone for a while, she would.

"Okay, why don't we go to your place then? You get out of work at seven, right?" Laura nodded. Today she worked from eleven to seven at the station. "I need to stop by my parent's house this afternoon, and maybe I'll have some dinner there, then I'll come over a little after seven."

With their plans set, Laura and Robbie finished breakfast before Laura got ready and left for work.

At seven-thirty that evening, Robbie showed up at Laura's. She hugged him and gave him a kiss right away. Robbie thought she was acting a little different than normal. Laura was always happy to see him, but tonight he thought that Laura seemed extremely happy to see him. He did notice that she was almost wearing a nervous smile though, and thought that she might have been trying to cover up her nervousness with happiness, although Robbie didn't have the slightest clue what Laura could ben nervous about.

The couple decided on watching a movie, and they cuddled on the couch when it started. Robbie had his arms wrapped around Laura, and Laura was resting her head on his shoulder.

"You're not going to fall asleep on me are you?" Robbie teased.

"No," she responded. "Your shoulder is just comfortable."

About fifteen minutes into the movie, Robbie said, "Do you like this?" Laura looked up at him.

"Not really," she said honestly.

"Want to watch something else?"

"Not really," Laura replied. Her answer caught Robbie off-guard.

"But you don't like it." Laura turned around in his arms and knelt up, placing her hands on his chest for balance.

"Well, I'd rather do something else," she said, hinting around.

"And what might that be?" he asked, pretending to have no idea what she was talking about.

"I think you know," Laura said, leaning in to kiss him. Robbie and Laura made out on the couch for a few minutes before Laura pulled away slightly.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing."

"Then why'd you stop?" he asked. Laura sighed.

"Because I want to talk to you about something."

"Okay," Robbie said with some hesitance, not really knowing what was coming.

"About us."

"All right," Robbie said. He knew talking 'about us' was usually not a good sign. "Is it good or bad?"

"It's good, don't worry," Laura said, sensing his slight concern.

"Well, in that case I sort of need to talk to you too," Robbie said, before he realized what came out of his mouth. He wanted to tell Laura he loved her, but his plan was to wait until she said it first. Now there was no turning back, unless he came up with something else about them to say.

"You first," Laura said.

"I don't think so. You mentioned you needed to talk, so you go first."

"You're the boy. You have to go first."

"I don't think so," said Robbie.

"Then I won't tell you," Laura said, and crossed her arms.

"Aren't you little Miss Stubborn?" Laura just giggled. "Okay fine," Robbie said giving in. "I just don't want to make things awkward."

"What do you mean?" Laura asked.

"Well, if I talk to you about what I'm going to talk to you about, I don't want you to think that you need you say anything in response if you don't want to, but I don't want it to be awkward."

"Robbie, I guess you'll just have to tell me whatever it is that you need to tell me, because this conversation is awkward enough as it is."

"Okay," he said with a nervous laugh. "You're amazing. And I really like where things are going. So far, we seem to have a pretty stable relationship, don't you agree?"

"Yeah . . . at least today our relationship is stable," Laura said with a laugh, to show she was joking.

"It's going a lot better than before. But then again, last time things went pretty good for a while too."

"They did," Laura agreed.

"Well, I love spending time with you and I wanted to tell you that I'm glad things are going well." Robbie suddenly lost the nerve to say the three simple words. He didn't know it, but Laura did too.

When Robbie had said that he needed to tell Laura something, she thought, and hoped, that he was going to say "I love you." When he didn't though, Laura didn't really want to say it either.

"I was going to tell you the same thing," Laura said, lying. "I love being with you and spending time with you. You're amazing."

Robbie then leaned into Laura and they began kissing again. Robbie's shirt was soon discarded on the floor, and Laura was laying on top of Robbie on the couch.

"Why don't we go in my room?" Laura said. "The bed is a lot bigger and more comfortable than the couch." Robbie agreed and they moved to her bedroom where their heated make out session continued. Laura rubbed Robbie's bare chest and then he tugged at the bottom of her shirt and pulled it over her head, revealing a lacy black bra. Robbie moved his lips to her neck and when he hit a sensitive spot, Laura moaned softly.

"I love you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. Robbie pulled back and looked into her blue eyes. For a split second, Laura wondered if he would say anything back.

"I love you too," Robbie said sincerely, then kissed her on the lips. Both Laura and Robbie's hands continued to roam each other's bodies while they kissed, and soon Robbie decided to take things one step further. He wasn't sure how far Laura would let him go before she stopped him, but he wanted to find out.

He moved his hands to the top of Laura's jeans, and undid the button and zipper. When Robbie felt her hands on his, he figured she wanted to stop, so he pulled back a little, but instead Laura was helping him with her pants. Robbie pulled back a little and looked at Laura for an answer to his unspoken question. Did she want to stop or keep going?

"I don't want to stop," she said, assuring him.

"Are you sure?" Robbie asked.

"Positive," Laura said, and they continued getting rid of their clothes.

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"That was amazing," Robbie said after they were done and laying next to each other in Laura's bed. Laura was laying on her back and Robbie was on his side facing her, with his head propped up on his arm. His other arm was tracing circles on Laura's stomach.

"Yeah," Laura said, smiling. "I love you," she said a minute later. This time, the words rolled off her tongue so easily compared to the last time in their heated moment of passion. Laura wanted to reiterate her feelings so Robbie would know that she didn't say it in the heat of the moment.

"I love you too," Robbie said, smiling at her. "It feels really good to say that."

"I wanted to tell you before, but I just . . . I don't know. I was scared you didn't feel the same way," Laura said.

"I thought the same thing." After a few minutes of 'pillow talk,' Robbie sat up more and leaned over Laura, with one hand on each side of her to hold himself up. He looked at her bare stomach and sides, and Laura wondered what he was doing.

"What in the world . . . ?" Laura asked, letting her sentence hang.

"Found it! I think," Robbie finally said.

"Found what?"

"The heart-shaped birthmark. Though, it's not really that heart-shaped. It's more like a circle." Laura laughed a little as Robbie looked closer. It was tiny and on her left side, near her ribs. Robbie ran his finger over it. "I think 'heart-shaped' is a slight exaggeration."

"No, it's not," said Laura in defense. "It really is heart-shaped."

"Barely," said Robbie. "You just think it sounds cool to say you have a heart-shaped birthmark."

"Well, I never said it was big. I just said I had one. And it is cool. And it makes me special, so there." Robbie then planted butterfly kissed on her stomach, starting with on her birthmark. After a minute, Robbie stopped and looked up.

"You're already special. You don't even need the birthmark," he said, making Laura smile.


	19. Chapter 19

meadow567: Thanks, glad you liked it. And I hope you write more soon, cause I really like that story. :)

NellieBly413672: Thanks for the great review!! Rizzo is a cutie, lol. I'm glad you liked it so much and I hope you like this chapter too.

neonnbible: Yep, they love each other. For now, lol. Just kidding. But they will fight some more coming up, so be prepared. Thanks for the review.

bluehaven4220: lol, I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoy this next chapter too.

A/N: Thanks again to everyone for the wonderful reviews! Reading them makes my day. This chapter is full of awkward moments, and I promise things will continue getting more interesting because the upcoming chapters are full of drama. Please review when you're done reading:)

Chapter 19:

The Wednesday after Laura went shopping with Maddie, she was going over to Maddie's dorm to hang out with Maddie and Gail. Laura was excited, because she took it as a sign that Maddie wanted to be friends and include her.

It was really nice having a night without Robbie and the rest of the guys too. With just the girls, Laura got to talk about Robbie, clothes, shoes, chick flicks, and everything else Robbie didn't like talking about. The three girls decided to have a girl's nights more often, just so they could have time away from the guys.

The next week, Laura, Maddie, and Gail got together again. They went out for a change and decided upon going to dinner and then shopping.

"So what's Jack up to tonight?" Laura asked Maddie as they were eating dinner. She knew Robbie, Buzz, and the rest of the guys from Minnesota were watching the North Stars game in Robbie's room, but since it was clearly North Stars territory only, Laura figured Jack wasn't there.

"He's at the hockey game," Maddie said. Then Laura remembered. The North Stars were playing the Bruins that night, and for their anniversary, Maddie had given Jack tickets to that game behind the Bruins bench. "He took Rizzo, Silky, and Jimmy because they're all Bruin fans," Maddie explained.

"I wonder if they'll be on tv," said Gail.

"I don't know. Being right behind the bench, there's a good chance," said Maddie.

The entire night, Laura, Maddie, and Gail talked, laughed, ate, spent a lot of money shopping, and had an all around good time. It was definitely different for Laura, because she had never talked so much with other girls before. Sure, she used to talk and laugh with her three friends in college, and other girls when she was in high school too, but their laughter was mainly at other people, and her friends never laughed and joked the way Maddie and Gail did. Laura also felt comfortable talking to Maddie and Gail about things she never mentioned to her other friends, like her most embarrassing moment and other silly things she did in her childhood. There were always some things Laura didn't want to tell Erica, Debbie, or Whitney. For the first time in her life, Laura felt as though she had real friends in Maddie and Gail, ones that wouldn't judge her or laugh at her for doing something silly or stupid.

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"So Mac . . . how are things with you and Laura?" Verchota asked between periods of the hockey game while they were sitting in Robbie's room.

"Good," said Robbie.

"That's it. Just good?" asked Bah.

"Yeah."

"There has to be more to it than that," said Pav. "You're with her constantly. And from what Johnson has said, it sounds like she's practically moved in your room."

"So?"

"So . . . things must be going great then, right?"

"Yeah. Things are fine." Robbie actually thought things were better than great with Laura, but for once he didn't want to dish out all the details of their relationship. If he needed advice, he'd ask his friends, but he also thought some things needed to be kept between him and Laura.

"So has she moved in?" Verchota asked a few minutes later.

"Technically, no," said Robbie. "Technically she can't. Plus, then she'd only have a place to live until the Olympics are over."

"Okay, you say technically no, but what does that actually mean?" asked Verchota. Bah answered the question for Robbie.

"It means that she's living there, but she still has her apartment or whatever." Verchota looked at Robbie for confirmation.

"I guess, yeah," Robbie said, hoping that would get them to lay off. It didn't.

"She must be wasting a fortune then. I mean, paying for an apartment she doesn't use . . . " Verchota said, trailing off.

"She gave up her apartment yesterday, okay," Robbie finally said.

"So, technically, Laura is living with you," said Pav.

"No, she's living with her sister." Robbie explained that Laura decided it would be best to give up her apartment, because she was rarely there. Her sister had a spare bedroom and offered Laura a place to crash when she needed to. Laura's sister also lived closer to the city than her parents, and if Laura moved back home, it would be hard to explain why she never spent the night there. Especially because they hadn't even met Robbie yet.

"That makes sense," said Verchota.

"Okay, enough about my love life," said Robbie. "What's going on with you Verchota? I saw you chatting up that girl the other night at the bar. How is she?"

"She's good," Verchota said, then smiled. "Man is she good." The guys understood exactly what Verchota was talking about now, and Robbie was happy they stopped giving him the fifth degree on Laura and started on Verchota.

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Later that night, after the game, Robbie and Laura were laying in bed in Robbie's room. Mark wasn't there that night. It seemed the guys played musical rooms half of the time. Jack was usually in Maddie's room, and that left Rizzo alone. Since Laura stayed with Robbie a lot, Mark usually let them have privacy and crashed in Rizzo's room. Typically, if any of the guys brought a girl back to their dorm, the roommate would leave them alone and go to Rizzo's room. Rizzo was used to having different guys there almost every night, but lately Mark was his roommate.

"Are you tired?" Laura asked a closed-eyed Robbie. He opened his eyes and looked at her.

"Not really. Why? Did you have something in mind?" Robbie asked, hinting around.

"Not really. But I'm sure you do," Laura said with a laugh.

"I think you might be right." Robbie gave Laura a kiss and then said, "I'll be right back. Then I can show you what I have in mind," he said, wriggling his eyebrows.

A minute later, Robbie walked out of the bathroom with a look on his face that Laura couldn't quite read.

"What?"

"I don't . . . I mean, we can't . . . I . . . I don't have a condom," Robbie finally said. Laura laughed at his inability to just say it.

"Don't worry about it."

"Well, we need one."

"It's okay. I'm on the pill."

"No, no, no, no, and NO!" Robbie said, walking over to the bed and sitting down. "We are **not** doing _anything_ without a condom."

"Why?" Laura asked, amused by Robbie's adamancy. She wondered why he was so concerned about this now though. Not having a condom never stopped them in the past.

"You are **not** getting pregnant," he said. Laura laughed little.

"I won't. Like I said, I'm on the pill." Laura still wondered what the big deal was. Their relationship was better than it had been ever before, but the sudden concern was new.

"Maddie was on the pill," Robbie pointed out. Now Laura realized why he was so concerned.

"I'm not Maddie."

"I don't care. We're not having sex without a condom."

"What would happen if I got pregnant?" Laura asked, out of complete curiosity.

"I'd dump you," Robbie said seriously, barely taking time to think about it. After seeing Laura's surprised expression turn into an angry one in a matter of seconds, he laughed and continued. "Only because you would have been cheating on me. You won't get pregnant with my baby, because I'm not taking that chance."

"But Robbie, even condoms aren't one-hundred percent effective," Laura pointed out.

"Do you like, not want to have sex with me or something? Cause telling me that condoms aren't totally effective is sort of making me want to abstain," Robbie said, sort of joking, but also serious. Laura giggled.

"No. But I'm just pointing out the facts. Just because Maddie got pregnant, doesn't mean I will."

"I'd still feel better using a condom."

"I know. I do too actually," Laura said, knowing Robbie was right. "So, I guess, if we're not actually having sex, we'll have to find another way to keep ourselves occupied," Laura said, pulling him toward her for a kiss.

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The next couple of weeks went by fast for everyone, and now it was the week before Thanksgiving. Laura was excited because Robbie had asked her to spend it with him and the team. Normally she would go to her parents, but she decided to take Robbie up on the offer. Plus, without Laura, Gail would be the only girl at dinner since Maddie was going home to Boston. Even though Laura wasn't the best cook, she offered to help Gail with dinner. Laura was assured that the guys would love the cooking no matter what, as long as it was edible.

The week before Thanksgiving, the guys were showering and changing in the locker room after practice. When Robbie walked over to his locker, he overheard OC talking to a few of the guys and obviously complaining about something.

"But if I have to walk to the store in the middle of the night, when it's that fucking cold, for the next three months, I'll go crazy," he said in response to a comment Silky had made.

"Why were you walking to the store in the middle of the night?" Robbie asked him.

"Cause he's a softie," Silky automatically replied.

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Aren't you glad you asked?" Rizzo interjected. OC then stopped arguing with Silky and jumped back in the conversation.

"Maddie wanted ice cream last night, and being the incredibly nice guy that I am," OC looked over at Silky to see him give the other guys a 'whatever you say' look before continuing, "I went to the store to get it for her."

"I guess you are a nice guy after all," joked Robbie. "Why'd she want ice cream so bad though?" OC shrugged before responding.

"Cause, like, pregnant people get cravings constantly. And I've heard that it's an unwritten rule that the boyfriend or husband, or really anyone, has to give in."

"So Maddie was craving ice cream," Robbie concluded.

"Yep. So if Laura ever craves ice cream, watch out," OC joked in a warning tone. Robbie just laughed it off, but made a mental note to himself to watch out for Laura craving ice cream. Especially because she didn't eat a lot of ice cream to begin with.

"I should at least be thankful that Maddie doesn't crave really strange things, like sushi. The best part about her craving ice cream is that I get to help eat it," OC said with a grin.

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The middle of the following week, and a few days before Thanksgiving, Robbie and Laura were watching a movie in his room after dinner when he started complaining about Maddie for the third time that day.

"And so then she asked Rammer to get her laundry, and when he got that, she asked him to do all sorts of other stuff. He was there for at least an hour. Then, she asked Bah to help her with something, and he was stuck helping her for an hour too." Laura was only partially listening to Robbie's complaints, because to her, they weren't all that important. She figured he would stop talking when he realized that she wasn't listening, but he continued. "Then, she wanted me to take her to the store for coke, because she wanted coke but only had Pepsi." Laura stopped Robbie and cut in at this point.

"Wait. Couldn't you have gone to the campus store or whatever?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, we did."

"So, it's not like you had to even drive to the store," she said, wondering why it was such a big deal.

"But I had to take the ten minute walk across campus."

"Poor baby," said Laura, mocking him. "All that walking. You must be exhausted."

"Hey! Excuse me if I was tired from skating Herbies all afternoon. Seriously though, what's wrong with Pepsi. She had that."

"There's a difference. You can definitely tell."

"So you're on her side."

"I understand female cravings, okay. Plus, they're even worse for pregnant people."

"But she's asking everyone to do everything for her." Robbie was about to go on again when Laura stopped him by rolling over onto his lap, facing him and placing her hands on his chest.

"Are you going to talk about this all night, or is there any possible way that I can get your mind off Maddie for at least a little while?" Laura said, leaning in close to Robbie and gently kissing him.

"I think there may be a way," he said, then returning the kiss. As Robbie began to tug at the bottom of her shirt, Laura pulled away. "What?" he asked her.

"I forgot. You're too tired to do anything from skating Herbies all afternoon. I wouldn't want you to wear yourself out."

"Well, I'm really not that tired. Besides, it's nothing a nice massage can't fix," Robbie said, grinning. Laura rolled her eyes.

"Take off your shirt," she said with a sigh.

"Don't act too enthusiastic about this, Laur," he teased. "I'll probably be able to return the favor later in some way."

"I'm holding you to that," Laura said, as she began giving Robbie a massage.

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Later on, Robbie and Laura were laying in bed, both wide awake.

"I am so not tired right now," said Laura.

"Really?"Robbie asked and looked over at her with raised eyebrows.

"I don't think so," Laura said, reading his mind. "I'm not tired, but I'm tired of _that_."

"Well, it is still early. It's only ten after nine. We could go out and do something."

"Okay. Let's go," said Laura, getting up with Robbie following her.

"Where are we going?" Robbie asked. At first, Laura didn't respond, but when Laura got a hopeful look in her eyes, Robbie could tell she had an idea. "What do you have in mind?" he asked.

"I'm hungry. And I could really, really go for something chocolatey." Laura thought for another minute. "I know!" she practically shouted, startling Robbie. "A chocolate milkshake!"

Robbie just looked at her and didn't say anything. He had a look on his face that Laura couldn't quite read.

"What?" she finally asked, when she saw the color drain from his face. He waited for a minute before responding, as if he wasn't sure whether to tell her what he was thinking.

"Are you pregnant?" he finally asked, completely serious.

"No," Laura responded, immediately wondering where he got that idea.

"Okay. Just making sure," he said. Laura suddenly realized where the idea came from. Maddie.

"You've been hanging out with Maddie way too much," Laura said with a laugh. "Not every craving means a person is pregnant. I mean, look at Rizzo. He craves meatballs like, every other day."

"That's different. He's a guy. And he's Rizzo," Robbie warranted. Laura laughed.

"Well, you don't have to worry. I'm not pregnant. I just really want a chocolate milkshake."

"Okay," Robbie said, feeling sort of stupid for asking if she was pregnant. He just wanted to make sure though. They were careful, but after hearing all about Maddie's ice cream cravings, Robbie was a little paranoid when Laura said she was craving a milkshake.

"You're really worried about me getting pregnant, aren't you?"

"Well, after Maddie . . . I don't know. I guess you can just never be too careful," Robbie replied awkwardly.

"Yeah, I guess not," Laura replied. Then she said, "Are we going to have another Maddie conversation, or can we get that milkshake?"

"All right, let's go," said Robbie, giving in.

"Thank you!" Laura said excitedly, giving him a hug and quick kiss.

"Anything for you, babe," Robbie said, smiling and wrapping his arm around Laura's shoulder as they left the room.


	20. Chapter 20

meadow567: I hate having writer's block and stuff, but it happens. I hope you enjoy the chapter and thanks for the review!

NellieBly413672: Yeah, Mac was weird this chapter. And I had to throw that in there about the chocolate shake and Mac wondering if Laura was pregnant, cuz it was perfect. Thanks for the review and I'm glad you liked the chapter.

neonnbible: Thanks. I would take Rizzo as a roommate too! Enjoy the chapter!

bluehaven4220: Peanut butter and pickles?! Not together right? Cuz that's gross, lol. Thanks for reviewing!

Burntorange: Lol, yes I am in college. Some of Laura's experiences are mine, and some were inspired by friends. The really funny part is that I did hit my head on a bathroom stall door before, but I wasn't drunk when it happened, lol. Explaining that was interesting :) Thanks for reading and reviewing though. I'm glad you like the story.

A/N: Thanks for all of the reviews! Enjoy the chapter. This one has a little drama, and there's a lot more to come!

Chapter 20

Early on Thanksgiving morning, Laura went over to her sister's apartment to put the turkey in the oven. For the dinner with the team that night, they were having three turkeys, and Laura was in charge of making one of them. Robbie went to visit his family in the mean time.

"Sorry I'm not coming to dinner, Mom," Robbie said a little while after getting to his parent's house.

"I guess I can forgive you, but only if you give me details on your love life. Who's this Laura girl?" his mother prodded.

Robbie looked over at his mother with a curious expression. He wondered how she even knew Laura's name. Robbie didn't think he mentioned her that much. It wasn't because he didn't want to tell people about Laura, but he didn't want to make a big deal about their relationship. Lately, there were a lot of things Robbie was hesitant about. Laura was one of them. He knew they loved each other, but since they had so many problems in the past, he didn't want to do anything to jeopardize what they had.

"Don't look so surprised, Robbie. I have my ways of finding out what's going on with my children," his mother said, pulling him from his thoughts. It was true. One thing about Robbie's mother was that she always knew what was going on with everyone. And she always found things out when she wanted to. It was like she had ESP.

"She's just my girlfriend, Mom," Robbie said with an exasperated sigh.

"I've heard she's pretty," his dad commented upon walking in the room. Robbie rolled his eyes.

"When do we get to meet her?" his mother asked, in a tone that suggested Robbie and Laura were way deeper than a simple relationship.

"Beth, honey, don't sound the wedding bells yet," Robbie's father warned his wife.

"Oh, I know that! But I can pray for him to find someone soon, can't I?" Robbie just sighed and rolled his eyes again.

Before Robbie left to pick up Laura later that afternoon, his mother asked four more times when she was going to meet Laura. Finally Robbie decided to get his mother off his back, he would agree to a date.

"How about Christmas?" Robbie asked.

"That's a month away. Can't you both come over for dinner next week?"

"I don't know mom. I have games, she has work, we're both busy."

"It would make me really happy," she said, obviously trying to make Robbie give in.

"Fine. I'll try to have her over next week. But I'm not making any promises."

"Good enough. As long as you try, I guess I can live with that."

"You're gonna have to."

Robbie wasn't sure why he was trying to put it off until Christmas, but he just didn't know how Laura would respond to having to meet his parents. She never mentioned bringing Robbie to meet her parents, and Robbie wasn't sure if she even felt they were at that stage yet.

He could always explain that his mother is crazy though. After meeting her, Laura would be bound to believe it. If he told her how adamant his mother was, and pretended not to care either way, whether she met his parents or not, maybe she wouldn't mind meeting them.

Robbie got to Laura's sister's apartment a little before two in the afternoon and greeted Laura with a kiss.

"Hey," she said. "I'm just about ready. The turkey's done, and I just have to change my clothes and I'll be ready to go."

"Okay, I'll take the turkey out to the car." Ten minutes later, Robbie and Laura were heading over to Buzz and Gail's.

Thanksgiving dinner went pretty well, and for the most part, everything tasted good. It was really nice sitting down for dinner with the team, instead of having their usual night out at a bar. Laura also realized that hanging out with the team was just as much fun sober as it was drunk. The guys didn't treat her any different when she was sober either. Instead, they treated her completely normally, still teasing and joking around with her, and Silky still playfully flirting with her.

During dinner, the guys were discussing ways to make Maddie forgive them for giving her the cold shoulder the past few days. Laura and Gail both heard all about how they had avoided Maddie at all costs the past few days, both from Maddie and Jack. The guys decided to throw a surprise baby shower for her, and Laura and Gail were both shocked. After setting the plans, Laura still couldn't believe that they would really be able to pull it off, but just prayed that it wouldn't turn out to be a disaster.

After dinner and dessert, the guys decided to play football. Laura and Gail became designated cheerleaders, but it didn't last long.

"Girls, why aren't you cheering?" asked Pav, teasing them. "My team just got a touchdown."

"I'm bored. I want to play," said Laura.

"Well, you can't," said Bah.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Cause you're a girl," he said.

"I cannot believe you just said that!" said Laura. "Now I have to play." Bah laughed. "I'll teach you a lesson," she added threateningly. Then she announced, "Robbie, I'm playing on your team." Laura walked on their field and got ready to play.

The guys finally agreed to let Laura and Gail play for a little while and they ended up being on separate teams. Laura tried to get the guys to include her in the play, but what they were explaining was too confusing for Laura to understand.

"Why can't we make this simple?"

"It is simple. For guys at least," said Jimmy.

Laura's team had the ball and each time, Laura was the only person open. Still, no one passed to her. After the third down she asked Jimmy, who happened to be the quarterback, why. He made an excuse about not seeing her, but promised to look for her next time. Sure enough, the next time, Laura was wide open again. This time, Jimmy threw her the ball, and it looked like she was going to catch it, but the ball slipped out of her hands and fell. The guys on her team groaned.

"Come on, Laura! You're supposed to catch those," yelled Pav.

"Where's the glue when you need it?" asked Rammer.

"Sorry guys. Next time I promise I'll catch it."

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep," said Robbie, giving her a quick kiss on the head to show he was teasing her.

The other team had the ball now, and like Laura was wide open, Gail happened to be wide open in the end zone on the fourth down. Bah was quarterback and passed her the ball, which she easily caught, so their team scored.

"So you trust her, but you don't trust me?" Laura asked Bah after he was done celebrating their touchdown.

"Uh, yeah. One, she just scored, so it's proven that she's good. And two, she just looks more athletic than you. Way more athletic. No offense," Bah explained.

A little while later, Laura had another opportunity near the end zone. Jimmy had to throw the ball and was running out of time, so he threw it to Laura. This time, Laura just barely caught it, but she caught it and held onto it.

"Laura, step in the end zone!" shouted Jimmy. Bah was coming at Laura, and Jimmy knew it would be close. The rest of the team began yelling too. Laura didn't realize what was going on until Bah touched her. After that, Laura stepped into the end zone and her team began rejoicing.

"Touchdown!" screamed Robbie, and then picked Laura up and spun her around. The other team began yelling too then.

"That was not a touchdown!" yelled Bah in opposition.

"Was too," said Rammer.

"Bah touched her!" said Verchota.

"It's tackle, not two hand touch," said Robbie.

"But she's a girl!" said Bah. "We only have to touch them," he said referring to Laura and Gail.

"That was never agreed upon," said Pav.

"But if I tackled Laura, Robbie would have killed me."

"Rules are rules. We never agreed on not tackling the girls, so it was still tackle," said Jimmy. "We scored fair and square."

The guys continued arguing for the next five minutes or so, and in the mean time, Laura and Gail went inside. The guys didn't even notice.

"Where'd they go?" Buzz finally asked.

"I think they got bored," said Mark, who was the only one to notice them leave.

"Well, this arguing is making me bored too. I'm done," said Verchota. Most of the other guys agreed and they all went inside. Only a few guys were left, so the game pretty much ended.

Once everyone left the apartment, Laura went back to Robbie's room. Although she was practically living there, she still wouldn't refer to it as her room.

"I think we had a pretty nice Thanksgiving," Robbie commented after they were ready for bed.

"We did. And I sure had a lot to be thankful for," Laura said, crawling into bed next to Robbie. She gave him a kiss. "Things like my friends," she said, meaning the team and Maddie and Gail. "And things like you." Robbie smiled.

"I'm thankful for you too," he replied.

A few minutes later, Robbie decided to ask Laura what he wanted to. He figured now was as good a time as any. "Laura?" he asked, almost hoping she was already asleep and he could put it off a little longer.

"Yeah," she answered.

"I have a little favor to ask you. Well, it's actually more for my mom."

"What is it?"

"She really wants to meet you," he said. Then before Laura could respond he continued quickly. "I don't even know how she knows about you, but today she asked like ten times when she could meet you. If you don't want to though, I'll tell her. I've already tried to say no, but it's like she won't take no for an answer." Robbie said all of this quickly, and exaggerated a bit, but he didn't want to make it seem like meeting his parents was his idea. When Laura didn't respond, Robbie looked over at her, noticing she appeared to be in deep thought. She finally began talking.

"I don't mind meeting your parents," she said.

"You don't?" Robbie asked surprised.

"No." Laura hesitated before continuing. "But I can tell you mind."

"What? I don't mind."

"Robbie, if you tried to say no before even asking me, it's obvious you don't want me meeting them. But please don't make me out to be the one that doesn't want to when you tell your mother no again."

"Laura, I never said-"

Laura cut him off, knowing what he was about to say. "You didn't have to. And that's fine. If you're not ready for me to meet them, that's fine," Laura said, pretending not to be bothered by it. In reality, Laura was bothered by it. She was actually hoping that Robbie would want to meet her parents at Christmas, but now she wasn't so sure she would ask. What bothered Laura the most though, wasn't that Robbie sounded like he didn't want her to meet his parents yet, but it was the other things he had said. Laura was really bothered by that fact that Robbie admitted to not even telling his parents about her. She mentioned Robbie to her parents, and if he loved her as much as he made it seem, why wouldn't his mother know about her.

"Well, if you want to meet them, we can," Robbie said. He was actually thankful that Laura wanted to meet his parents. Laura was the first person he really loved, and he wanted his parents to know her. And obviously, Laura was at the same point in the relationship if she wanted to meet his parents.

"Don't do it because I want to. I only want to meet them if you want me to."

"I do," Robbie said, trying to assure her.

"It didn't seem that way," Laura said, unsuccessfully trying to hide her irritation. Now Robbie was confused. He began thinking that Laura only said she wanted to meet his mother because she thought it would make him happy.

"I do want you to meet them, but obviously you don't really want to or we wouldn't be arguing about it right now," Robbie said in an angry tone.

"You the one who started it and won't drop it," said Laura, annoyed at Robbie's anger over something so simple.

"But you're the one who's keeping it up," Robbie said, needing to have the last word. Before Laura continued and said something she knew she'd regret, she got out of bed.

"I'm going for a walk," she said calmly.

"You can't just leave. We're talking. And it's dark out."

"One, you can't stop me from leaving. Two, we're arguing, not talking. And I don't want to argue anymore tonight, because it's just going to get out of control, and I'll say something I regret." Laura let the words sink in with Robbie for a minute and then continued. "And three, I'm not afraid of the dark."

"Come on, Laura," Robbie said, more calmly now, trying to get her to stay.

"I'm going for a walk. I promise I'll be back. I just need to be alone and think for ten minutes."

"You're coming back to sleep here though?"

"Yeah. I promise, okay?"

"All right. Do I at least get a kiss?" Robbie asked as she was walking out of the room.

"No, because I might forget that I'm a little irritated right now. And I might forget what I need to think about," Laura said, shutting the door on her way out.

Laura walked outside and liked the feeling of the crisp November air on her face. First, she thought about what a weird relationship she and Robbie had at times. They fought a lot, but half of the time, they were little spats that would be forgotten about with a kiss. Their argument that night would have too, but Laura knew she needed to think about what he had said and why it bothered her so much. She came to the conclusion that she wasn't really mad at him, but just curious as to where he stood with things. The best thing would be to talk to him about it, but she wanted to wait. Maybe it was a guy thing, and Laura knew exactly how she would determine that.

Robbie decided to stay up until Laura came back, but as the minutes passed slowly, it became harder to keep his eyes open. He finally drifted into a peaceful sleep, and had a dream about Laura.

When Robbie woke up the next morning, he immediately noticed Laura's spot next to him was empty. He remembered her trying to wake him up earlier, saying something about shopping, but he was too tired to get up. Then he remembered their fight the night before, and falling asleep before Laura came back. Robbie had no idea whether she was still mad or not, but he figured he'd find out when he saw her later on.

After he was dressed and ready to go shopping for the baby shower, Rammer, Mark, and Jimmy came over. They waited a while, and with each passing minute, Robbie became more worried about her. Since he couldn't remember her even coming back in last night, he thought that maybe she didn't. He tried reasoning with himself. _But if she didn't come back, why would she have been here this morning, waking me up to go shopping? _He wondered. _Unless I was dreaming, and she wasn't even here trying to wake me up. _Robbie thought about this and went over possible scenarios in his head, all ending with Laura dead in a ditch somewhere. Trying to shake the images out of his head, he tried to concentrate on what Jimmy had been saying. It didn't help, because he was talking about Laura.

"Are you sure she was even coming with us?" he asked.

"That's what she said at dinner last night," said Rammer, not waiting for Robbie's response. As if on cue, Robbie's door opened and Laura entered the room, her hands full of shopping bags. Robbie breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hey guys," she said, dropping the bags the second she got into the room. "Those were heavy."

"Where the hell were you?" Robbie asked, angry about her casualness about her disappearance. Laura didn't seem to notice his edge though.

"Shopping. I told you I wanted to get to the stores early. Since you didn't want to go, I did some shopping by myself." Robbie then realized that she did tell him, and that he wasn't dreaming it, and his anger disappeared.

"But you don't need anymore clothes. Your closet is full," he reasoned.

"I wasn't shopping for myself. I was Christmas shopping."

"Already?" Mark said, surprised.

"Yeah. There were a lot of sales today. I got most of the gifts I needed to."

"Did you get mine?" Robbie asked curiously, about to look in the bags.

"Yes! Don't look in there," she said.

"Okay, okay. Sorry. I won't."

"Well, we better get going. It's really crowded out today."

"They can't be that crowded," said Rammer, talking about the stores.

"Yeah, how crowded could the stores possibly be?" asked Jimmy.

Robbie followed everyone out, stealing a quick glance at Laura who noticed and smiled back. By her smile, Robbie guessed that she wasn't mad at him anymore, and was slightly confused with their whole fight in the first place. _Maybe I dreamt our fight, _he thought, knowing that he was really tired at the time. Deep down though, Robbie knew he didn't dream the fight, and was wondering what was going on.

Robbie had a chance to talk to her alone for a few minutes when they first got to the mall. Like Laura said, it was packed. Robbie drove, and he dropped the guys off at the entrance when he went to find a parking place. Laura stayed with him, and he decided it was the perfect opportunity to talk.

"Are you mad at me?" Robbie asked right away.

"No, why would I be?"

"Well, last night we didn't exactly work things out or whatever."

"It's fine."

"Are you sure?" Robbie asked, wishing Laura would just talk to him if something was bothering her.

"Positive," Laura said, giving him a reassuring smile. "I was just having a bad moment. But if you really want to talk, we will later on."

"Okay," Robbie said, slightly reassured things were okay. He asked anyway. "So things are okay between us then?" By this time the car was parked and they were just sitting inside. Laura leaned over and looked Robbie straight in the eyes.

"Yeah, things couldn't be better. And I love you," Laura said, giving him a lingering kiss in reassurance.

"Maybe we could just ditch the shopping idea and you could prove that things are really okay." Laura rolled her eyes.

"I'm going in the mall now," she said, opening the car door and stepping out. She knew Robbie was only joking though.

"All right fine. We'll go shopping," said Robbie, following her.

After their interesting day of shopping, Laura was exhausted. When she got back to Robbie's room, she sprawled out on his bed and mentioned taking a nap. She was going over to Gail's that evening to finalize things for the party. Laura had a bunch of games in mind to play that could be fun and interesting for the guys. She did want to rest for a while first. Since she had been up since four thirty that morning, she knew a long nap would be nice.

Robbie walked over to Laura and laid down on the bed next to her. He lay on his side and wrapped his arm around her waist.

Laura could tell Robbie was watching her, but instead of trying to avoid it like she usually did, she pretended not to notice and kept her eyes closed. This change had something to do with what Robbie had accidentally said earlier that day. While they were shopping, Robbie mentioned something about spoiling their baby one day. Meaning his and Laura's baby. Laura tired not to think too much about it, but it was hard to keep the words out of her mind. She knew it was accidental, but she also knew it couldn't have been a complete accident. People didn't say things like that without ever thinking about it sometime before hand. Honestly, Laura didn't know what to think though. She really loved Robbie, and especially after hanging out with Gail, who was married, and Maddie, who was pregnant, she started picturing herself in their shoes.

The previous night, Laura began thinking that maybe Robbie didn't feel the same way, mainly because their conversation about her meeting his parents, but now she wasn't so sure. After what he let slip today, Laura started telling herself that he was just unsure and scared himself. Trying to sport out the confusing thoughts running through her mind, Laura fell asleep with Robbie watching her.

Watching Laura's chest rise and fall with her deep breaths, and looking at her face which almost appeared to be in deep thought, Robbie thought about what he told her earlier that day. At the time, he almost kicked himself. He had no idea why he said anything about them having a baby one day. They were no where near that point. Robbie tried to justify the words by telling himself it was all the talk of Maddie's baby, but he wasn't so sure it was as simple as that. Robbie loved Laura, and more than he ever imagined. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her away, but he wanted to know what she was thinking too. She didn't seem to be too scared about the baby thing that he let slip out though, so maybe it didn't really bother her. Sometimes, the relationship was far too confusing for him and he wished they could have it simple, like other couples seemed to have it. For example, other than the surprise pregnancy thing, Jack and Maddie seemed to have things pretty simple. Buzz and Gail did too, and Robbie never saw them fight. He also knew Buzz and Gail talked things through. Too tired to think anymore, Robbie dozed off.

A/N: Hope you all liked it. I didn't include the conversation where Robbie mentions having a baby someday. It's in Glory Days though, so if you want to read that part, it's in chapter 17, about 3/4 of the way down.


	21. Chapter 21

LaLaGirl33: Thanks! I'm really glad you like it and thanks for the review. I hope you enjoy the rest just as much!

meadow567: They do need to talk, and they will. Thanks for the review, and I think you'll enjoy this chapter. Less avoiding, more talking.

NellieBly413672: Lol, I know. I've tried to play football, but I'm so bad. I don't get it at all. Meeting the family will be the first chapter that you come back to. Thanks for the review!

bluehaven4220: Laura definitely grows a lot over the course of the story, and continues to learn things about relationships, and not just with Robbie. Thanks for the review and I'm glad you're enjoying the story.

A/N: Here's another, I hope everyone enjoys it. A conversation that has been a long time coming is coming this chapter. Oh yeah, there's a nice cliffhanger at the end for you! Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 21

The Saturday after Thanksgiving was the day of the baby shower. A little before two in the afternoon, the entire team, with the exception of OC, was at Buzz and Gail's. OC was picking Maddie up from the airport and bringing her to the surprise shower.

"When they get here, everyone needs to be quiet," said Laura. "Maddie can't hear you guys until she comes in, because I want her to be totally surprised. And Bah, stop looking out the window! I don't want her to see you when they pull up." Bah immediately moved away from the window and pulled the curtain closed, following Laura's orders.

A half hour later, Silky looked at his watch. "Shouldn't they be here soon?" he asked no one in particular.

"Do you have someplace better to be?" asked Gail.

"Well . . . " Silky started, though only joking.

"Guys, they're here," Rizzo said, who was looking out the window.

"What did I tell you about the window?" said Laura.

"She won't . . . crap I think she saw me!"

"Pull the curtain shut!" said Laura.

Once Jack and Maddie came up to the door, the team could hear them talking to Gail in the hallway. Gail invited them in and once Maddie walked into the living room, everyone shouted, "Surprise."

Maddie was very surprised, and started getting teary eyed. The guys explained their reasoning for having the shower and apologized for being jerks the past week. Everyone had a lot of fun at the party, and it turned out to be a success. Laura and Gail planned a bunch of games for the guys to play, including one that resulted in the guys having their own "babies" which were balloons. They had to walk around like they were pregnant and try to not pop their balloon. Laura thought some of the guys looked hilarious.

"What is the point to this game again?" Silky asked, pretending he didn't want to be playing, even though Laura could tell he was having fun.

"To make us look ridiculous," said Robbie, just as his balloon popped when he bent down to tie his shoes. "Damn it! Does that mean I lose?"

"Yeah," said Laura. "And it also means that it's a good thing I'll be carrying the baby." After realizing what she just said, she quickly covered with "And not any of you guys because you can't do anything and complain way too much."

"Well I think women have it easier. Real babies can't be popped like balloons can," Silky pointed out.

After Rizzo won that game, they ate cake and watched Maddie open presents. Everyone had a great time at the party, and after it was over, Buzz and Gail were standing with Robbie and Laura, walking them out.

"Thanks for helping with the clean up," Gail said.

"No problem," Laura responded.

"Someone else is going to have to get pregnant soon," said Buzz, looking at Gail and Laura. "I want to throw another baby shower."

"Not until after the Olympics are over," said Gail. Buzz turned to Laura.

"Are you crazy? Don't look at me. I'm not even married."

"Yeah, don't look at her," Robbie added with a laugh.

"Maddie and OC aren't married," he commented.

"Maybe eventually I'll let you throw my baby shower," said Laura, compromising with Buzz.

"In a few years or so," added Robbie. "Well, at least, it will be a few years if it's my baby." Robbie then blushed and a somewhat awkward moment followed.

"All right. We're gonna go," said Laura. "See you soon."

"Bye guys. Thanks again," said Gail. Buzz and Gail watched Robbie and Laura leave and then went back inside and shut the door.

"They're going to get married someday," said Gail.

"Who? Mac and Laura?" asked Buzz.

"Yeah. Definitely." Buzz looked at unsurely. "Don't you see it? They're so in love you could be practically blinded by it. And everything I hear them say. Those little comments that end up being really awkward after. I know they'll end up together."

"I'm not so sure. They always break up. Every time they've dated so far, things were going great for a while, and then one day, something suddenly changes. I really don't think this time will be any different." Buzz kissed his wife on the forehead and looked at her. "I'm sorry to burst your bubble, because I know you love playing matchmaker, but I'm warning you that it probably won't work out. So don't get your hopes up." Gail then mimicked him and kissed his forehead.

"And I don't mean to burst your bubble, because I know you hate being wrong, but I'm always right," she said with a triumphant smile.

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The following Friday afternoon, Laura and Maddie were hanging out in Maddie's room while the guys were having a team meeting after practice. Laura hadn't seen Robbie that much during that week, because every time he was free, she was working, and when she had off, he had a game or practice. She did admit the little bit of a break was nice for a change though. It gave her extra time to think about what was going on between them. Ever since Thanksgiving and after that when Robbie mentioned having a baby someday, there had been a little tension between them, even though they had made up. Laura didn't do anything to help the situation by mentioning a baby at the shower either. Other than those couple times, where a baby slipped out in conversation and a very long term relationship was implied, nothing was ever said about it. Laura and Robbie were also both doing what they did best, which was pretending that nothing was going on. They covered it up so well that Laura didn't even think anyone else would be able to sense the tension. She just didn't know how to bring up her feelings to Robbie. Any conversation relating to the subjects of meeting parents, marriage, or babies, was bound to be awkward. Laura wanted to talk to Maddie and get her advice before she talked to Robbie, and now she had her chance.

"How long had you and Jack been dating before you met each other's parents?" Laura asked as they were sitting on Maddie's bed, flipping through magazines.

"Actually, we were friends for a while before we dated so we each met each other's parents before we started dating," Maddie responded. "Have you met Robbie's parents?"

"No. He asked about it the other day, but it sounded like he didn't want me to meet them then. I don't know, I'm sort of frustrated with the whole thing," Laura said.

"Have you talked to him?"

"No. I should, but I haven't yet." Laura then went on to explain the whole situation to Maddie, everything including Robbie mentioning having a baby while they were shopping.

"It sounds like he's confused," said Maddie with a laugh. Then she got serious. "Maybe he just doesn't want to scare you off and he doesn't know exactly how you're feeling. I would talk to him about it."

"Okay, thanks."

"But don't mention what he said about the baby. That will make for a really awkward conversation," Maddie warned her. Laura laughed.

"Thanks, Maddie."

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Later on that night, Laura decided to talk to Robbie. She had just called her parents to say hi, and after hanging up, she had the perfect segway into the conversation.

"So, my parents want to know if I'm going to be home for Christmas dinner," Laura said, hoping Robbie would continue a conversation on that topic.

"Oh," was all he said. Laura sighed. This was going to be harder than she thought.

"Well, I want to spend Christmas with you too, but I don't know what your plans are."

"I think we're having a party at Doc and Velta's on Christmas Eve. You can come if you want to."

"Okay. Are you going to your parents on Christmas Day then?"

"I don't know."

"Well . . . " Laura started. Getting information out of him was harder than pulling teeth. She didn't know how to ask him without coming straight out and asking him, which she didn't really want to do.

"Well what?" Now Laura began getting angry at Robbie. She thought it was almost like he was doing this on purpose. He probably knew exactly what point she was getting at.

"Nothing. Forget it," Laura said cooly.

"Come on, Laur. If there's something you wanted to ask me, then ask."

"There's not."

"Fine," Robbie said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You guys are big babies," said Mark, getting up to leave the room. Both Robbie and Laura completely forgot he was even there. "Just talk to each other already," Mark said, shutting the door behind him. They both began laughing then which helped to ease the tension.

"I didn't even know he was here," said Laura. "He's so quiet most of the time."

"I know," said Robbie, still laughing. After a minute, they both looked at each other and stopped laughing.

"He's right you know," said Laura. "We are big babies. I mean, we can't talk to each other about anything. We just pretend everything is fine and we ignore our problems."

"Yeah. Whatever happened to trying harder?" Robbie asked, thinking back to a previous conversation about talking things through.

"I don't know."

At the same time, Robbie Laura both said that they need to talk about the other night, in some way. Then they both said "You first." They laughed at the slight awkwardness.

"Okay, honestly . . . I want to meet your parents," Laura said. "And I want you to meet mine."

"Okay," Robbie said, looking uneasy.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked.

"Nothing."

"We're talking about things, remember?" Laura said, reminding Robbie.

"All right, fine. I want you to meet my parents too. And I want to meet yours, I guess. I just want them to like me."

"They'll love you, because I love you," Laura assured him. "And you're a good guy. Don't you think your parents will like me?"

"I don't know. I guess, yeah. I don't know why they wouldn't."

"You're making it seem like they might not. And that's scaring me," Laura admitted.

"Well, it doesn't actually matter if they like you or not, does it?"

"Of course it does!" Robbie was actually hoping to hear that from Laura. His biggest fear about meeting her parents was that they would hate him, like Maddie's dad hated OC. Then Laura continued. "Robbie, if they don't like me how could we ever expect-" Laura stopped, almost saying something she didn't actually want to. She almost said "expect to get married one day."

"Expect what?" Robbie prompted.

"Expect to keep dating and stuff," Laura lied, her face turning red. Robbie didn't seem to notice her embarrassment.

"My parents will like you," Robbie assured her. After talking a few more minutes, they decided that Laura would meet Robbie's family in two weeks on a Sunday for dinner. They also agreed on going to breakfast at Laura's house on Christmas morning, and going to Robbie's house in the evening for dinner.

With that out of the way, both were more relaxed and the tension that had built over the past week had seemed to disappear. Now they could actually enjoy the rest of the evening, without having thoughts about their relationship in the back of their minds.

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Almost two weeks later, in mid December, Laura and Robbie were out one night, having a really good time. Lately, they had been practically inseparable, and they both loved it. Phil and a few of the other guys began teasing Robbie that they were in the honeymoon phase of their relationship all over again. For once, Robbie didn't care how much they teased him. He loved Laura, and didn't care what anyone thought.

"You need to teach me how to play hockey," Laura said while they were at an outdoor skating rink. They were alone on the ice, and skating hand in hand. Robbie didn't really answer but just mumbled a reply. "Come on," said Laura. "I'd probably be good." Robbie looked at her like she had two heads and then Laura playfully hit him.

"Hey," he said, rubbing his arm like it hurt.

"That didn't hurt. But I would so be good at hockey. I mean, look at me skate," Laura said, pulling her hand away from Robbie. Just as she did, she sort of tripped and almost fell. Robbie began laughing.

"You can't even skate without falling. How the hell do you think you can skate and concentrate on moving a puck around with a stick?"

"Okay, well I might not be that good at hockey, but at least I'd be having fun."

"I believe we've already established that you should stick to tonsil hockey," Robbie teased.

"Fine. Make fun. I'll get someone else to teach me how to play then," Laura said, skating away and pretending to be mad. Laura skated around the ice and came up behind Robbie. Then in a seductive sort of voice Laura added, "And here, I thought you teaching me to play hockey would be really sexy, and a great turn on. You know, some one on one with my boyfriend." She skated away again and from across the rink she yelled, "But that's okay. I'm sure there's a couple of your friends that would take your place in a heartbeat." Now Robbie skated up to Laura, and turned around, skating backwards in front of her.

"Do you really want to learn how to play?"

"Yeah. It'd be fun," Laura responded.

"How about tomorrow night then?" He grabbed her hands, still skating backward.

"It's a date." A few seconds later, Laura added, "You're gonna have to teach me some necessary skating moves tonight then." Robbie smiled and proceeded to show Laura how to stop fast and do a few other easy moves. Before Laura tired any though, they ended up calling it a night because Laura's feet were sore. She explained to Robbie that she needed to rest so she was in top condition for playing the next day so she would have a chance at winning.

"You will never beat me," said Robbie with a smile.

"Oh, but I can try."

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The next night, when Robbie got to the rink, Laura was already in her skates, ready to go.

"You're excited about this aren't you?"

"Yes I am," replied Laura. "Do you have my stick?" Robbie pulled out a stick for Laura to use, and he tossed her a puck. "I'll be out in a few minutes. You don't mind if some of the guys join us, do you?" Robbie asked. He had invited the team to play with them.

"Not at all. As long as I'm not on your team, cause I plan on kicking your ass," she added matter-of-factly, with a smile.

"We'll see about that," said Robbie.

Soon after Robbie was on the ice, the other guys were ready to play too.

"Don't you guys get enough hockey every day?" asked Laura to no one in particular.

"Yeah, but Mac informed us that you've decided to take up the sport, and from what he's said, this is a sight to be seen, so we're all here to watch," said Bah, though he was only joking.

"Well, I'm having a little trouble skating right now," Laura said, almost falling over. "The ice is slippery."

"Uh, yeah. It's ice," Silky said sarcastically.

"Well, normally the ice isn't this wet," said Laura. "It has like, a layer of water on it."

"That's because they just cleaned it a little while ago," commented Mark. Laura then fell and the back of her jeans were wet.

"Damn it!" Robbie and Silky laughed at her a little.

"You already look amazing on skates and we haven't even started yet," was another sarcastic comment toward Laura, this time coming from Verchota.

"Well, I haven't been on skates in years, so of course I need to get used to it," Laura said, making the fact clear to everyone. After everyone believed her, Robbie spoke up.

"Don't let her fool you. We went skating the other night." The guys laughed.

"But that was different. It was outside." The guys mumbled a few more sarcastic remarks about the difference between outdoor and indoor ice and then they started playing.

After a little while, Laura commented on her own improvements and Robbie challenged her to a race. As they started skating down the ice, Laura knew she was beating Robbie solely because he was letting her. In an attempt to teach him a lesson for letting her win, she decided to stop right in front of him.

Robbie turned his head for a second and he turned back to see Laura stopped. It was too late to react though, and Robbie slammed into Laura, knocking her down. Jack made a comment about cheap shotting being Robbie's specialty, which he chose to almost ignore as he checked on Laura.

He bent down to help her up, but he stopped when she looked up at him, disoriented and said, "What just happened?"

"Oh my God!" Robbie said, noticing a pool of blood forming on the ice, coming from a huge gash on Laura's forehead.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked, wondering why everyone gasped.

"You hit your head. Come here, let me see it. You're bleeding." Laura tried to stand up, but even with Robbie helping her, she felt dizzy and like she was about to fall. "It's pretty deep. Let's go get it cleaned up," Robbie said.

As Robbie held Laura hand, helping her skate off the ice, she fell. "Laura, are you all right?" Robbie asked. Laura didn't move and Robbie panicked. "Laura, get up," he said again. Laura still wasn't moving, and Robbie became more worried.

_This is all my fault, _he thought. _If I hadn't suggested a race. If I was paying more attention. Oh God, I hope she's okay. Laura, please be okay. _Thoughts continued racing through Robbie's head as he tried to sort out what was going on. _She's still not getting up. Why not? Why isn't she getting up?_


	22. Chapter 22

meadow567: Thanks, glad you liked it. And thanks for reviewing!

NellieBly413672: No problem, I'm glad you liked the chapter. And you're right, there is a lot of fluff in this one :) I hope you enjoy!

neonnbible: Thanks. Your question will be answered this chapter, and enjoy! Thanks again for the review.

Bluehaven4220: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! Both of your questions will be answered this chapter. I hope you enjoy! Oh yeah, and thanks for asking me when the baby was due, because I forgot to mention it. With writing Glory Days, it's almost like I assume people know things, when I forget they might not. So thanks again. The part I have in there about the due date is thanks to you!

Chapter 22

The seconds that were passing felt like minutes to Robbie as he saw Laura laying on the ice. He didn't know what to do to help her. They guys were crowding around, watching the scene, and Maddie came over to help. Every imaginable scenario ran through Robbie's mind. Finally, Laura came to and a feeling of relief washed over Robbie. He was relieved that she was conscious, but he was so scared that it would happen again that the next few minutes were a blur to him.

The next thing he knew, Robbie was in the locker room, holding a towel to Laura's head, trying to control the bleeding and Laura blacked out again. Each time, Robbie became progressively more worried that something was severely wrong. It only took a minute before Laura came to this time, but she didn't remember anything. Maddie assured Robbie that loss of memory was completely normal with head injuries, but he still didn't feel better. After looking at Laura's head, Maddie told Robbie that she needed to go to the hospital to get stitches and possibly a CT.

"She'll be okay though, right?" Robbie asked.

"She should be fine, but she's going to need stitches."

"Want me to drive you to the hospital?" OC asked Robbie.

"Thanks, that would be great." Robbie then turned to Laura. "We're going to take you out to the car," he told her, meaning him and OC. She nodded, but it was clear Laura was a little confused.

Fifteen minutes later, OC dropped Robbie and Laura off at the doors of the emergency room, and then went to find a parking place. After Robbie and Laura walked into the waiting room, Robbie signed Laura in and then took a seat next to her. He sat with his arm around her as Laura held a towel to her head. The bleeding had subsided a little since the accident, but it didn't stop completely.

Luckily the emergency room wasn't crowded that night, and Laura was called in to see the doctor almost right away. Robbie went in with Laura so he could explain what had happened and OC stayed in the waiting room, reading Sports Illustrated.

"Laura, do you remember any of what happened?" the doctor asked after Robbie explained the story once already. She shook her head. "Okay, first we're going to get you stitched up and then we'll do a few tests to make sure your head is all right."

"Is this gonna hurt?" Laura asked, referring to the stitches she was about to get.

"Getting the shot of local anesthetic will hurt the most. Your head in general will probably hurt for a few days though. I'll give you some painkillers in a little while."

While the doctor put eight stitches in Laura's head, Robbie held her hand, trying to take her mind off of it as much as he could. The doctor then made Laura follow his finger with her eyes, he shined a penlight in her eyes, and he did a few other simple tests, trying to determine if she suffered a concussion.

"I'm going to order a CT, just to be on the safe side, but with the symptoms your boyfriend described, it seems like you may have gotten a grade three concussion."

"Is that bad?" Laura asked. She thought a concussion sounded pretty bad.

"It could be worse," was the doctor's reply. "You seem to be okay now, and you haven't lost consciousness since you've gotten here, so as long as the CT doesn't show anything more serious, you can probably go home tonight."

When Laura went upstairs to radiology, Robbie waited downstairs with OC. Since OC was too busy reading about his beloved Boston Bruins to talk to Robbie, Robbie went into the gift shop to look around and pass the time.

Robbie saw a lot of cute get well soon related things, but a cute teddy bear, dressed in a hospital gown, that had a bandage around his head, and his arm in a sling, stuck out in his mind. He knew it was perfect for Laura, and decided to buy it.

After Laura had the Cat Scan done, Robbie and OC were told they could wait with her until the results came back. Robbie walked into the room, holding a pink gift bag with the bear inside and OC followed.

"I got you a little something," he said, handing the bag to Laura. Laura looked inside and pulled out the teddy bear.

"This is adorable!" she squealed delightfully. "Thank you," she said, outstretching her arms to Robbie. He hugged her and shared a quick kiss.

"How are you feeling?"

"Okay. My head hurts, but other than that I'm okay. I think the bear's in worse shape than me," Laura said, looking at the bear and smiling. "I didn't break any bones, and I don't have a huge bandage wrapped around my head."

Even though Laura was in good enough spirits to make a joke, Robbie still found a way to make things serious. "Well, on the surface you're not in bad shape, but I'm worried about what's going on inside because of the whole concussion." From his years of playing hockey, Robbie knew the possible severe side effects of concussions, and he knew how dangerous the situation could be if she did suffer a concussion.

"You really know how to lighten up the situation," OC said very sarcastically before leading the conversation in a happier direction once again. "You know, I actually picked that bear out Laura. I told Mac that getting it was a great idea."

"You did not!" said Robbie. "You were too busy reading a magazine to talk, which is why I was even in the gift shop in the first place."

"So you admit it. You got the bear because of me."

"Indirectly," Robbie said.

"It was still thanks to me," OC said, winking at Laura, who laughed.

Not realizing OC was just giving Robbie a hard time, he added, "Oh yeah, and if I recall correctly, OC, you asked, and I quote, 'Wha'd ya get the stupid bear for anyway?'" Robbie tried to imitate OC in his best attempt at a Boston accent, which was terrible. Both Laura and OC began laughing uncontrollably.

"That was pathetic," said OC, when he finally stopped laughing enough to get the words out. Laura was still laughing. Finally she stopped almost stopped.

"Ow, that laughing makes my head hurt," she said, still giggling a little.

Robbie sat on the edge of the bed next to Laura and kissed her cheek. "Ya know, if you keep laughing at me, I may have to take that bear away and give it to some other girl that cares."

"You wouldn't."

"I would," Robbie said, nodding.

"No, because then I'd hate you forever. I mean, I already named the bear so you can't take it away. It'd be like taking candy from a baby."

"You know, that expression doesn't actually make sense," OC said, including himself in the conversation between Robbie and Laura. "Babies can't actually have candy, or any sweets for that matter until they're at least a year old," he said, matter of factly. "And," he added, "most candy shouldn't even be eaten until they're about three, because it's easy to choke on it. By that time, they're not even considered babies anymore, but toddlers."

Laura and Robbie both looked at OC stunned. He knew a lot about babies all of a sudden. Even though Maddie was pregnant, they were still surprised. Laura said, "It sounds like you've spent the last hour or so reading parenting magazines."

"He was reading Sports Illustrated," Robbie said.

"I wasn't reading that the whole time. Hospitals have decent parenting magazines too." Picturing OC reading a parenting magazine was difficult for Robbie, who thought that it would have been a funny sight. "After all, if I'm going to be a daddy seven weeks from tomorrow, I need to know about baby things."

"So you have the day picked out?" Laura asked. She knew Maddie was talking about being induced to the baby wouldn't be born on the due date which was Valentine's Day and during the Olympics, but she didn't know they had it set up yet.

"Yesterday we had an appointment and Maddie's having the baby on Thursday, January 31."

"That's exciting!" said Laura.

"Yeah. Having a date makes it that much more real too. We have a count down going now on this calender we bought."

"That's so cute," commented Laura.

"Okay, anyway, back to the subject," Robbie said.

"Which was?" Laura asked.

"Ugh, I don't remember," said Robbie.

"Good, cause I'd rather talk about the baby anyway," said Laura.

The three continued in conversation about the baby for a while as they waited for the Cat Scan results. It was at least something to take their minds off of waiting, and it did. When the doctor came back in, they almost completely forgot about the Cat Scan and being in the hospital all together.

"Good news is that there was no brain damage," the doctor said, seeing the looks of expectation on everyone when he walked in the room. A look of relief quickly washed over all three faces. "Laura, you can go home tonight, but only if someone stays with you. I don't want you to be alone in case anything happens. It's just a standard precaution for concussions." The doctor looked over at Robbie, silently asking if he would be with her.

"I'll be with her," Robbie said.

"Good. I want to wake her up a few times in the middle of the night. If you have a lot of trouble waking her, more so than would be normal, I want you to bring her back to the ER right away." Robbie nodded in understanding before the doctor continued. "I also wrote a prescription for pain medicine which you'll want to get filled at the pharmacy before you leave. Don't take anymore until tomorrow though, because I already gave you enough for tonight. And only take it as it's needed." After a few more orders, Laura was discharged and able to leave. OC pulled up the car and Robbie helped Laura out, even though she could walk a lot better on her own now.

Once they got back to the dorms, Robbie and Laura were getting into bed and Laura tried to make light of the situation.

"Well, I never thought someone would tell me to spend the night with my boyfriend." Robbie just smiled, but Laura thought it looked like something else was on his mind. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing."

"Come on. I know there's something," she said, laying next to Robbie and facing him.

"Okay, fine," Robbie said, sighing. "It's just that I was really worried about you tonight. I was so scared when you didn't get up. I started thinking the worst. And it was all my fault. If I hadn't suggested racing-"

"It wasn't your fault," Laura said, trying to reason with him. "I'm the idiot who tried to teach you a lesson by stopping in front of you."

"But racing you was a stupid suggestion in the first place, and I should have been paying more attention."

"It's okay," Laura said, seeing how upset Robbie was. "It was just an accident. It was no one's fault. And I'm fine. Other than the fact that I'll have a scar, there's no permanent damage."

"But you could have, and it would have been my fault."

"Robbie, stop it. It was an accident."

"I still feel guilty," he said, remorsefully.

"Fine," Laura said with a sigh. Then she added, "It was all your fault and I forgive you. Did that make you feel better?"

"No," he answered, now smiling a little though.

"Baby, it was an accident. Accidents happen."

"But you could have been severely injured."

"I wasn't," Laura pointed out.

"When you fell and weren't getting up, I was so scared. And seeing you lose consciousness a few times was scary too. And right after it happened, when I saw all the blood . . . " Robbie trailed off before finishing his thoughts. "I just don't know what I would have done if anything happened to you." Laura didn't know what to say in response, so she just gave him a light kiss. She knew he was taking it hard and feeling guilty about the whole thing. "I love you so much," Robbie said, finishing his thoughts.

"I love you too. And thanks for being there for me, and for the bear, and for being so concerned. I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend," Laura said, knowing the words were absolutely true. Hearing that also brought a smile to Robbie's face and they both soon fell asleep.

Robbie wasn't asleep for very long before waking up though. Almost every hour, he woke up and watched Laura, thinking that something would happen if he didn't watch her. He watched her chest rise and fall with her soft breathing, which eventually put him back to sleep. The third time he woke up, he nudged Laura.

"Laur, wake up." She sort of moaned and rolled over, but didn't wake up. "Laura, wake up," Robbie said a little louder and nudged her more. She finally opened her eyes and looked at Robbie sleepily.

"What do you want?" she half groaned, wanting to go back to sleep.

"The doctor wanted me to wake you up," Robbie reminded her.

"Ugh," Laura sounded before closing her eyes again. "I'm alive, all right, but I'm dead tired. Just go back to sleep," she said, not happy about being awakened.

Robbie smiled at Laura, who already appeared to be sleeping again, and gave her an affectionate kiss. After watching her for a few minutes, Robbie went back to sleep himself. He woke up several more times during the night after that, and just watched Laura sleep peacefully for a few minutes before closing his eyes again. He was glad she was going to be okay.

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! I originally planned for it to be meeting Robbie's parents too, but the chapter was way too long, so I slpit it in two. So, since I have the next chapter written, it will be up most likely Friday. Oh yeah, and happy fourth of July. I hope you all have a great day. It's raining where I live so that pretty much sucks, lol.


	23. Chapter 23

meadow567: Glad you liked it. Thanks for the review.

neonnbible: I want a Robbie too! lol I'm glad you liked the chapter, and thanks for the review!

LaLaGirl33: Aww, thanks. I'm so glad you liked it. And I hope this is up quick enough for you :) Enjoy the chapter and thanks again for the review!

BurntOrange: Thanks, and thanks for the review. Even though it rained, at least it stopped in time for fireworks. I'm glad you liked the chapter and I hope you enjoy this one too.

miraclefan9245: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked it. I really wish Robbie was my boyfriend too! That seems to be a common theme, lol. I hope you like this chapter too!

A/N: Thanks again to everyone for the great reviews! Here's another as promised. Laura meeting Robbie's parents. I hope you all enjoy it and please review!

Chapter 23

"Did you take a pain pill?" Robbie asked Laura the Sunday afternoon a few days after her injury.

"No. They make me really tired and I don't want to fall asleep at dinner tonight," Laura responded. Tonight was the night Laura was meeting Robbie's parents, and she wanted to make a good impression. She was especially nervous because it was the first time she was ever meeting her serious boyfriend's parents.

"They'll understand, Laura. I told them you got a concussion and eight stitches!" Laura sort of ignored Robbie and began getting ready to leave for his parent's house. As much as Robbie told her taking the pill would be fine, she still wouldn't.

Seven outfits, four hairdos, nine looks in the mirror, and three hours later, Laura was ready to go.

"Laura, we don't need to leave yet," Robbie said. "It won't take an hour to get there."

"Then maybe I'll go change my shirt. I don't really like this one too much." Robbie walked over to Laura and rested his hands on her shoulders, looking her in the eyes.

"You look fine. That shirt looks wonderful and you don't need to change."

"But what if-"

"It's fine," Robbie assured her. Laura just sighed. "They'll like you."

"Is there anything I should know about them before I go?"

"I don't know. Don't worry about it. They'll like you."

"How do you know?"

"I've told you a million times. I love you and so will they." Laura still wasn't so sure she believed Robbie. Just because he loved her didn't mean his family would too. A while later, Robbie and Laura finally left.

On the drive over to Robbie's, Laura felt increasingly nervous. Normally she didn't care what people thought, but this time was different. _If his parents hate me, they might never change their minds,_ _and I don't want a bad relationship with my in laws like some people have, _Laura thought. _Wait. Did I just say in laws? Why am I thinking about that? We're not even close to being engaged. I don't want to get married. Well, not yet. What made me think of his parents as my in laws?_

Interrupting Laura's thoughts was Robbie, who seemed to sense her nervousness again, and he reassured her once more that meeting his parents was fine. At the same time though, he was wondering if he would be acting the same way when he had to meet her parents on Christmas.

Robbie pulled the car into his driveway and noticed someone looking out the window. He thought it was his sister, but whoever it had been moved away quickly. Laura stepped out of the car and just stood, staring at the McClanahan house for a minute. Robbie grabbed her arm and they walked up to the door.

"Hi guys," Robbie said upon walking in the hall.

"Hi Robbie!" his mother greeted him, and gave him a hug. His father was standing behind her. "You must be Laura," she then said, seeing Laura standing awkwardly behind Robbie. Laura smiled and shook the hand extended to her.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. McClanahan."

"Please, call me Beth." Robbie pulled Laura into the house and introduced Laura to his dad.

"And you can call me Peter."

"Nice to meet you." Laura remembered the container of cookies she was holding in her hand. "These are for you guys to enjoy," she said, handing Beth the container. "I made them myself. I hope you like chocolate chip cookies."

"We do. Thank you," Beth replied. "Come in and sit down." Laura and Robbie followed his parents into the living room where a boy and a girl who appeared to be about the same age were sitting. Laura knew they were Robbie's siblings right away, even though they didn't look much like him. Robbie looked more like his dad with his dark hair and hazel eyes, while the other two looked more like his mother with lighter brown hair and green eyes.

"This is Noah," Robbie said, introducing her to his brother. "And this is Natalie. They're twins."

"Nice to meet you," Laura said.

"Noah goes to Northwestern and is following in his brother's footsteps playing hockey," Beth said. "And Natalie goes to the University of Chicago." After talking with everyone for a few minutes, Laura realized two things. Although Beth seemed very nice, Laura could tell that she was one of the mothers that had a lot of pride in her children, because she wouldn't stop talking about their accomplishments. Secondly, Laura realized that Robbie was the model child, or that was at least how Beth saw him.

"I've heard you're a news reporter?" Beth asked Laura after she was finished talking about Robbie and the twins. This was Laura's first opportunity to say almost anything except what she wanted to drink.

"Yes, but right now I'm just working up to that point."

"Well, reporters and news anchors are needed all over. I'm sure it will be easy to get a job in any city. I've visited Buffalo before, and if my memory serves me correctly, they have three news stations just like we have here. Getting a job there will probably be easy. That's if you're planning on joining Robbie when the Olympics are over."

Robbie chocked on his drink, surprised his mother would be that blunt. _Well, I guess it shouldn't be much of a surprise, _he thought. Following Beth's spiel on the subject of Buffalo was a very awkward moment of silence. Laura had no idea what to say, and in all honesty, the thought hadn't really entered her mind. If it did, she tried to push it out before it consumed too much thought. Now she was put on the spot, especially because Robbie hadn't even mentioned Buffalo. Luckily Robbie broke the silence.

"Mom, I don't even know what's going on with that yet. Let's not finish planning out my life yet."

"Well, the Sabres want you. You had an offer before, and I'm sure you'll get another after the Olympics. I was just wondering what Laura was planning on doing," Beth said, again putting Laura on the spot. Laura could feel her face redden. She still had no idea what to say, and know idea what Robbie wanted her to say.

"Isn't dinner almost ready, Mom?" Robbie asked, trying once again to get her off the topic, and he looked to his dad for help.

"Beth, honey, let me help you in the kitchen," David said, sensing the awkwardness in the room. He continued, not waiting for a comment from his wife. "Noah and Natalie, fill everyone's glasses for dinner. Laura and Robbie, you can come in and sit down."

Together, Robbie and Laura stood up and Robbie began leading her into the dining room.

"I'm so sorry," he said, apologizing for his mother. "I had no idea she'd mention anything about that." Robbie was embarrassed his mother said anything, because he hadn't said anything to Laura about Buffalo yet. He wasn't even sure himself what was going to happen after the Olympics. "You'll find out quickly, if you haven't already, that my mother is like, OCD about planning everything out, including her children's futures."

"It's okay, I can understand that," Laura said, sympathizing with him, even though she had no idea how it really was. Her parents were nothing like that.

Apparently, David must have talked to Beth in the kitchen because she didn't bring up Buffalo again during dinner. At least not directly. Many things she asked Laura about were border line touchy subjects though, and they focused on the idea of a _very_ long term relationship between her and Robbie. Like ideal wedding locations. And the subject of the best way to raise children. And telling stories of her life, including David's marriage proposal. If these weren't strong hints, Laura didn't know what was.

Throughout dinner, Laura became increasingly uncomfortable. She had noticed that she wasn't the only one though. Robbie didn't say much of anything unless it was in an attempt to change the subject the twins began having their own conversations, and David did everything he could to make the conversations less awkward.

Nothing Beth said was directed explicitly at Laura and Robbie, but their future status was implied. Laura didn't want to be rude by not answering Beth's questions either, however, she tried to say as little as possible. She figured not talking was the best policy.

After a short pause, Laura took the liberty to comment on Beth's cooking.

"Beth, this is delicious macaroni and cheese," Laura said. "I've never had better." It was true, Laura did think the macaroni and cheese was amazing, but she gave the compliment in hopes to have her begin talking about cooking.

"Thank you, Laura. I could give you the recipe. You know, Robbie loves my cooking. I've always hoped that someday he'll marry someone that is just as good a cook." Beth looked at Laura with a slight twinkle in her eye, which Robbie noticed as well.

"Mom!" he said, a little loudly, trying to warn her about staying off that subject. Robbie mainly wanted to stay off the subject of cooking because he knew Laura wasn't very good at it. "Why don't we hear about the twin's semesters so far? It's nice that they got to come home for the weekend to meet Laura, and it's only fair to let Laura get to know them too."

"Well, of course they came home for the weekend. This is a big family dinner. Getting to know Laura and everything." Robbie rolled his eyes and thought, _Here we go again._

"My semester's been good," Noah began. "Hockey's going great. It's just starting up. Hockey at Northwestern isn't NCAA though."

"My semester is going great too," said Natalie. She looked at Laura. "I'm still an undecided major."

Everyone tired to continually talk for the rest of dinner, not pausing because of their fears that Beth would bring up something to make the conversation awkward again.

After dinner, Laura offered to help clean up, not because she really wanted to be with Robbie's mother any more than she had to, but she wanted to be nice. Laura brought some dishes into the kitchen.

"Why don't you just go sit in the living room with Robbie? The twins will help me clean up."

"I can help," said Laura.

"No, I insist, go sit down and relax."

"All right," said Laura, secretly glad to be leaving. Beth joined them in the living room shortly thereafter, and sat on the couch, next to Laura. Robbie was on Laura's opposite side. When Robbie wrapped his arm around Laura's shoulder and pulled her closer, she didn't object. However, when Robbie planted a little kiss on her neck, just below her ear, Laura twisted out of Robbie's embrace. She knew his parents weren't paying much attention to them at the moment, but Laura still didn't want Robbie kissing her in front of his parents. On the cheek or even lips was one thing, but on her neck was a little too far out of her comfort zone. All night actually, Robbie had been doing little things that made Laura uncomfortable. Normally, they were things that Robbie did daily, and she never even thought about the little affectionate gestures, but with his parent's presence, Laura felt awkward.

An hour later, everyone sat down at the table again for dessert. Beth made a delicious cheesecake. Laura was very impressed. It tasted just like cheesecake from a fancy restaurant.

"Mmm, this is amazing," Laura commented, taking a bite.

"Yeah, Mom. This is great," said Robbie. Everyone else agreed, complimenting Beth on the cake.

"I'll give you the recipe Laura," Beth offered.

"Thanks. I don't think I'd have much success though," she replied honestly. "I'm not very good at baking. I can say that I'm embarrassed I made you those cookies now. Robbie never told me how good a cook you were, and if I had any idea, I wouldn't have made cookies." Laura shot Robbie a glance, silently scolding him for not mentioning his mother's cooking. "They're not going to be anywhere as good as something you would make."

"I'm sure they're just fine." Beth then let out a sneeze and excused herself to get a tissue. She returned a minute later.

"Are you allergic to something?" David asked her. "Your eyes look swollen and you've been sneezing since dinner. Your face it looking a little rashy now too."

Right away, Beth turned to Natalie, realizing the cause. If she had a rash, the cause was obvious. "What have I told you about that perfume?" Beth asked Natalie. "You know I can't be around it. Now tomorrow I'll wake up with a rash all over, and my face will be completely swollen, and tomorrow is also the day I have to speak at the fundraiser. You better hope it goes down by then Natalie!"

"I'm not wearing any!" she said defensively.

"Well, maybe it's your lotion. Considering I'm only allergic to floral scents, I know it's not any of the guy's faults."

"I promise I'm not wearing anything, Mom!"

"Well, I have to go take a Benedril before it gets way out of my control. Maybe I can avoid looking absolutely horrendous!" she said angrily, walking out of the room.

Laura's face suddenly turned beat red and she looked down at her plate, focusing on the remaining few bites of cheesecake. It must have been her perfume that triggered the allergies. At the same time that she was very embarrassed, she was also furious at Robbie. Maybe telling her what a good cook Beth was, wasn't important, but didn't he think that a perfume allergy was important?!

"Are you okay, Laur?" Robbie asked, not realizing what was going on. She looked at him with an angry expression.

"Floral perfume," she mouthed to him, and pointed to her neck.

"I'm sorry," he mouthed back, understanding what she was talking about.

"What's wrong, guys?" David asked the two of them.

"I have perfume on," Laura said.

"It's okay," said David. "Beth will get over it. Don't worry about anything."

"I'm so sorry," Laura said, not thinking she could apologize enough.

"You didn't know," David said.

Laura looked at Robbie. "Do you think it would have been a nice idea to tell me that your mother is allergic to perfume?!"

"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. It's not like I wear it and have to remember everyday," he said, with a bit of an edge. It was an accident and Robbie didn't know why Laura was so mad at him about it.

A silence at the table followed with David, Noah, and Natalie just looking at them. Moments later, Beth walked back into the room. Laura spoke up right away.

"I'm really sorry, Beth. It's all my fault. I had no idea you were allergic to perfume."

"You're the one wearing the perfume?"

Laura nodded, with a guilty expression on her face.

"Next time I sure hope you think twice about wearing it over here!" Beth said, the words coming out a bit stronger than she intended. Everyone in the room just stared at her, surprised at her angry outburst.

"I'm gonna clean up the dishes," said Natalie, beginning to move around the table and collect the dessert plates. Noah followed her and helped her, not wanting to be there any longer either. Beth got up again then, and David followed.

When Laura and Robbie were left alone in the room, Laura said, "Well that was awkward."

"Yeah, it was. I'm sorry for not mentioning anything. I just honestly didn't think about it."

"It's okay." Laura sighed. "I just feel so guilty, you know. And now, your mother probably hates me."

"That wouldn't make her hate you, Laura."

The rest of the night was pretty awkward, and though Beth assured Laura that she wasn't mad later on, Laura still thought she was. After Robbie and Laura left, Robbie talked about the night on the way home.

"So that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Except for giving your Mom a bad allergic reaction. And her constantly taking about the future . . . no, it wasn't bad at all." Robbie noticed a little sarcasm in her voice.

"She's not always like that," he said. Laura looked at him incredulously. She knew he was lying because he'd told her before that his mother did things like that. "Well, she's usually not that bad. I don't know what it was. Maybe it's just because I've never brought a girlfriend home before to meet them and she's acting weird."

"Well, up until the perfume incident, I think she liked me," Laura said. Robbie laughed a little.

"Trust me. Even if she didn't, you'd never know. My mom is really good at pretending to like people. Part of her job is pretending to like people."

"Was that supposed to give me extra assurance, Robbie? Cause it didn't exactly make me feel good." She wondered what possessed Robbie to say that. Laura couldn't remember what Beth's job was at the moment either, but that wasn't what began concerning her anyway. _What if she was only pretending to like me?_ Laura thought, due to Robbie's words sinking in her head. "So your mother pretends to like people all of the time?"

"I didn't really mean to say that," explained Robbie. "She wasn't pretending with you. I could tell."

Laura tried to believe what Robbie said, but inside she just wasn't so sure anymore.

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"So you didn't like her?" Noah asked his mother, after Laura and Robbie had left. From what his mother had just said, it gave him reason to believe Laura wasn't on the top of her list.

"What was wrong with her?" David asked. "I thought she was very nice."

"She was way too quiet," Beth replied. "And not Robbie's type at all. I thought for sure that Laura would be outgoing, but she seemed shy."

"Maybe that's because you were talking non-stop for a while Mom," Natalie piped up. "Even if she wanted to talk, she couldn't."

Noah added his own thoughts to add to Natalie's point. "And you were probably intimidating her with all of your future talk."

"Oooh, big word. Intimidating," Natalie teased. "Did you just learn that one in Vocab 101 last week?"

"Haha, very funny."

"Didn't you notice anything else though?" Beth started again, ignoring Noah and Natalie. "I mean, every time Robbie touched her, she tried to move away from him. And I can tell she doesn't want to uproot herself for Robbie after the Olympics. I just hope Robbie realizes how self-centered she is."

Noah and Natalie exchanged glances, wondering what Beth was talking about. David spoke up and brought up points both of the twins were thinking.

"Beth, maybe Laura thought it was weird to display affection with you sitting across from them."

"If she loved him, I don't think she'd care."

"Maybe she didn't think it was appropriate. And for the record, she doesn't seem self-centered. I don't think they've discussed what's happening after the Olympics. Robbie said he doesn't know himself."

"I just don't think she's nearly as committed to Robbie as he is to her. And I don't want to see him get hurt." Beth paused for a minute. "And, if her cookies are any indication of her talent in the kitchen, I hope Robbie can afford to hire a cook. If not, he'll starve."

"Beth," David warned her.

"They were terrible," she said.

"Just because they're not as good as yours, doesn't mean they're terrible. Some people obviously think they're good, or else she wouldn't have made them."

"I liked them," Noah said.

"You like anything that is supposed to be edible," Natalie said, rolling her eyes. "But for the record, those cookies weren't as good as mom's, but they weren't awful either. Just different."

"Why would she wear perfume over here?" Beth said, changing the subject a little again. "I'm highly allergic."

"Robbie didn't tell her."

"I find it hard to believe that Robbie didn't tell her."

"I thought you wanted Robbie to find a girl and be happy," David pointed out. "He sure is happy. You need to give Laura a chance. And here I thought you really liked her."

"I did. Until she made it seem like she doesn't want to settle down, and that she's not very serious about the relationship."

"I think she was just nervous," said David. "And you didn't help in not adding pressure. Like Noah said, I think you scared her a little."

"Well, I think you're wrong," said Beth, leaving the room. She was sure that Robbie would see Laura's faults eventually. Beth just hoped he realized them before it was too late.


	24. Chapter 24

neonnbible: Thanks for the review and I'm glad you liked the chapter! You'll see what happens with Beth next chapter.

miracle fan 9245: Thanks, I'm glad you like the drama. I hope you enjoy this chapter too!

LaLaGirl33: Haha, no, that wasn't from a personal experience, thank God. How embarrassing would that be? Thanks for reviewing and I'm glad you liked it.

meadow567: Thanks. No one's gonna slap Beth across the face though, lol. Sorry to disappoint. She really wouldn't like Laura then. Thanks again for the review!

BurntOrange: Thanks, and yeah, I'm happy my mother wouldn't pull any of that too. At least I hope not, lol. I hope you enjoy this chapter too.

Bluehaven4220: Yeah, Beth is definitely very pushy. She does get a little better next chapter though. But the drama's not over yet. Thanks for the review.

A/N: Sorry this took longer to get up than the last time. I had writer's block on the Christmas part. It's actually split in two chapters now, because it was too long. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy. Oh yeah, and thanks again for the reviews! Six after one chapter is a record I think!

Chapter 24

"So, what did you think of Laura?" Robbie asked his mom over the phone the day after she met Laura.

Beth paused before answering. "She was different than I expected."

You didn't like her, I take it," Robbie said. He was surprised but his voice didn't show it.

"I never said that."

"You didn't have to."

"Well, she's just so quiet. And she doesn't seem serious enough. It doesn't seem like Laura likes you as much as you love her." Before Robbie could respond, Beth added, "And I don't want you getting hurt."

"I won't, Mom. Laura loves me. She was nervous though, and you didn't help. All you did was pressure her with telling her about how you want the perfect wife for me. We're not even close to that point yet."

"But Robbie-"

Robbie cut his mother off, deciding to finish. "No, Mom. You barely know Laura. You can't go and push us into things." After Robbie finished, he asked, "Did everyone else like her?"

"Yeah," Beth said, quietly.

After further trying to defend Laura, Robbie finally hung up the phone. He couldn't believe his mother didn't like Laura, and he was somewhat discouraged. Going to practice that day, Robbie was already in a bad mood, and then his day was made even worse. Tim Harrer showed up at practice. Herb decided to bring in another player to 'help' the team. As far as Robbie was concerned, the team didn't need help. The guys already there were perfectly capable of playing well and winning.

That night, Laura came over after work and was cheerful as usual. "Hey Robbie. Do you have any plans for us tonight, because I was thinking we could go bowling or something? I haven't been in so long and it would be fun. We can get some of the other guys to go to, and maybe get a pizza or something before."

"I don't really feel like it tonight."

"Come on, Robbie. It'll be fun," Laura said, trying to convince him.

"I don't feel like it!" he said louder, and sort of nastily.

"What crawled up your ass and died?" Laura asked, trying to joke around and make him laugh. Robbie shot her a glare. "Geese. What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing."

"Come on. Tell me," said Laura.

"I don't wanna talk about it," Robbie said flatly.

"You can tell me. I'll be a good listener. It might help to get whatever it is that's wrong off your chest."

"What part of I don't want to talk about it didn't you understand?" Robbie asked, picking up the remote and turning on the tv.

"Fine. We won't talk," Laura said, quietly, wondering what Robbie's problem was. The entire night there was tension in the room. Laura didn't want to leave, but Robbie was really bothering her. At one point she was going to find Maddie and ask if she knew what was wrong, but she decided against it.

"I'm going to get ready for bed," Laura said, breaking the silence in the room.

"Good for you," was Robbie's response. Laura went into the bathroom, and tried her hardest to hold the tears back that were welling in her eyes. She didn't know why Robbie was mad at her, but that's the feeling she had started getting. Obviously she did something to make him mad, but she couldn't figure out what it was. Once she was ready for bed, Laura put the look that Robbie wasn't bothering her back on her face and exited the bathroom.

"Goodnight," she said, slipping into bed next to Robbie and facing away from him. Robbie turned off the tv and the light, only mumbling goodnight in response. Laura did her best not to start crying again at Robbie's coldness. Being that it was that time of the month didn't help either. Normally she wouldn't cry because Robbie was being a jerk.

After Robbie turned off the light, he started feeling guilty. He made Laura so mad that she didn't even say her usual, "I love you." Robbie wanted to let it go, but after a few minutes of thinking about it, he couldn't anymore. It's not like his problems that day were Laura's fault. Robbie turned the light back on and half sat up, leaning over Laura's shoulder, and then kissed it lightly.

"I'm sorry," he said. Laura rolled onto her back to look at Robbie. "I've been acting like a real jerk tonight. And you don't deserve to be treated that way. I just had a really crappy day. Not that I should take it out on you though. But I'm sorry."

"So you're not mad because I did something, right?"

"No. I'm not mad at you at all," Robbie said, giving Laura anther quick kiss. "I love you. And maybe I'll feel like talking about everything tomorrow, but tonight I just don't."

"It's okay," said Laura, accepting Robbie's apology. After saying their 'I love you's" and 'goodnight,' Robbie and Laura went to sleep.

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For the next couple days, Robbie was really stressed out. He tried to act happy when he was with Laura, but Laura could sense the building tension. Robbie eventually told her what was bothering him, or at least some of it. She knew all about the Tim situation, and agreed that Robbie had every reason to be upset and worried, but Laura didn't think that was the only thing on his mind. She couldn't figure out what else it could have been though.

The night Robbie returned from their game at Harvard, Laura could immediately tell he felt better. As soon as she walked in the room, she could sense the difference in his mood.

"Isn't this a pleasant change?" she commented.

"Me and a few of the boys had a talk with Herb tonight. Tim's gone."

Laura smiled. "That's great," she said, happy to hear the news. "Does this mean you're all better now?"

"Yeah, I guess I am," he said. Now Laura started thinking that his stress maybe was completely about the Tim thing. After all, now he seemed completely back to normal. What Laura didn't know was that Robbie had another talk with his mother earlier that evening. Although his mother still didn't like Laura, she had admitted that she was a little hard on her at dinner, and that she also may have put a little too much pressure on the situation. Robbie knew this was a step in the right direction, especially when she promised to go easier on Laura at Christmas. "I love you," Robbie told Laura. "I know the past couple of days I haven't shown it too well."

"I know you love me. And I also know that everyone has those moments. I'm sure I've had many along the way. I'm just glad you're feeling better now."

"Yeah. I'm feeling much better. I'm happy, and in a good mood, and glad to be with you," he said, wrapping his arms around her and lowering his face to hers.

"Well, if you're in that good a mood..." Laura started, and trailed off, then kissing Robbie. As their kiss deepened, Robbie moved to pull Laura's shirt off. He then picked her up and lowered her to the bed, their lips never leaving each other. After that night, Robbie was sure all of the tension that was building over the last few days was gone.

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On Christmas Eve morning, Laura was making Christmas cookies with Maddie and Gail while Robbie was Christmas shopping with a few of the guys.

"Typical guys, waiting until the last minute to shop," Gail commented.

"Yeah, we're lucky to even get presents from them. How can they find stuff at the last minute?" Maddie wondered.

"Do you guys have any idea what you're getting?" Laura asked.

"Nope. But I hope it's as good as what I got for him," said Maddie.

"What do you want, Laura?" Gail asked.

"Anything really. But like I told Maddie the other day, I really want a mood ring."

"I think I'm getting jewelry. Buzz kept hinting at stuff this whole week, and it sounded like he was trying to pick something out," Gail said.

A few minutes later, Robbie, OC, Buzz, and Rizzo walked into the room. They could smell the cookies right away.

"Those smell good," said Rizzo.

"Those look good," Silky corrected him, seeing the cookies on the counter. He tried to take one and Maddie slapped his hand away.

"Not yet," she said.

"Please?"

"Nope."

"Come on Maddie. You need to let us have cookies," Silky told her.

"Don't you want warm ones?" she asked.

"Yeah," Silky said happily ready to wait now. She told the guys to wait a couple minutes and by the time they were out of the oven, the entire team was crowding around the girls. While the guys cleaned off two trays of cookies and were stuffing them in their mouths, Robbie pulled a carton of milk from the fridge.

"Baby, can you get me a glass?" he asked Laura, who was standing in front of the cupboard.

"Sure, here you go," she replied, handing him a glass. He walked over and kissed her temple.

"Thank you. How's your head feeling today?" Robbie knew Laura's head still bothered her a little. She got the stitches out three days before, and even though she didn't need the painkillers everyday, the past couple days seemed to be worse than others.

"Better. I didn't need the painkillers today," Laura replied.

"That's good to hear."

"I'm just mad I'm going to have a scar," Laura said, pouting a little.

"Well, guys dig girls with scars," Robbie said, in an attempt to make her feel better.

"Isn't it the other way around?"

"I don't know. But I think your scar is pretty sexy," Robbie said, making Laura laugh.

"It's a big scar on my forehead. How is that sexy?"

"It just is," Robbie said, catching her lips in a kiss. For a couple seconds, Robbie and Laura forgot the rest of the team was standing in the room too. Once Laura realized they weren't the only ones in the room, she pulled away.

"We'll continue this later," she whispered to Robbie.

"Okay," Maddie said, loud enough to get everyone's attention. "Guy need to get out of here now so we can finish baking and still have some cookies left for Velta's."

Uttering sounds of complaints, the guys still made their way out of the kitchen and back to their rooms. The three girls finished baking the cookies and got them ready to take to the party at Velta's that evening.

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Just after dinner, Robbie decided to give Laura her present. Both Laura and Gail went to Velta's for a little while, before they each went to their parent's houses. Laura's present for Robbie was already at her house, and she told him that he would get it the next morning when he came over for breakfast.

"You're still gonna give me mine now?" she asked when Robbie handed her a box.

"Of course. I actually just can't wait any longer. I hope you like it."

Laura tore off the wrapping paper, which was clearly done by Robbie because of the amount of tape that was used. "Do you think you used enough tape?" she asked, joking.

"Uh, I guess. I wanted to make sure it would stay wrapped."

Laura opened the box and saw three individually wrapped presents. She decided to open the heaviest one first. She gasped when she saw it. "Oh my God, this is beautiful." Robbie had given her a framed picture of the two of them, taken at Thanksgiving. Robbie was behind her, with his arms wrapped around her waist and his head resting on her right shoulder. They both had big smiles on their faces and looked incredibly happy. "Thank you, baby," she said, and gave him a kiss.

"You're welcome. I'm glad you like it," he said, smiling, happy to see that Laura was so happy with the gift. Robbie also shot a thank you smile to OC, who was watching them. OC had been the one to give him the idea of the picture.

Laura opened her next present, which ended up being a mood ring. She was excited about that too. She asked Robbie how he knew she had wanted one.

"Santa told me," he said with a grin. Robbie actually heard her telling Maddie that she wanted one a few days before. When Laura looked over at Jimmy, who was dressed in a Santa suit, Robbie added, "Not that Santa. The real Santa." After Laura slipped the mood ring on her finger, Robbie looked to see what color it turned. It was dark blue.

"That means happy," Laura told him.

"I'm happy too," he said, and then gave her a kiss. Silky ruined their moment.

"Stop playing tonsil hockey and finish opening your presents."

Robbie and Laura laughed before Laura opened her last present, which was a Grease movie poster. Grease was her favorite movie. After Laura thanked him, she told Robbie that she needed to get going. Robbie walked her out to her car.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning," Laura said, standing at her car with her arms wrapped around Robbie's neck.

"Yep. Tomorrow morning," Robbie said. Laura sensed some nerves.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure my parents will love you just like your parents loved me," Laura said with a smile. Robbie smiled back guiltily. He still hadn't told Laura that his mother didn't like her. He was hoping his mom would come around, and maybe if Laura thought Beth liked her, she would feel less pressure the following night and be herself more. If that was the case, he was sure his mother would like her more.

"I wish I could wake up with you on Christmas morning," Laura said.

"Me too. But I guess seeing you gives me an extra incentive to go to breakfast at your house."

"Thanks again for my presents. I love them."

"You're welcome."

"I love you."

"I love you too," Robbie said. The couple stood there for a couple minutes, making small talk. It was their way of trying to avoid Laura's departure.

"You better get going," Robbie finally said. "Call me when you get there though."

"I will."

"I love you."

"I love you too," Laura said, kissing Robbie before getting in her car.

"See you tomorrow."

"Bye."

"Drive safely."

"I will. Love you." Laura blew Robbie a kiss and started her car. Robbie waved as Laura pulled away and then went back in the house.

After the guys all got their gag gifts, some of which were very funny, they decided to play football. Their game came to a quick halt when Velta started calling for OC to come in the house.

The guys began playing again, but within minutes they stopped again when they saw OC carrying Maddie to Doc's car, with Doc following close behind.

"Is she okay?" Bah wondered out loud.

"I hope so," said Rammer.

When Velta came outside, Robbie asked what was going on. "Velta, what's wrong?"

She explained that Maddie was possibly having contractions and in pre-term labor. This caused the guys to begin asking questions all at once, all revolving around whether Maddie and the baby would be okay. Velta told them not to worry and to go back to playing football, but they were all too worried about Maddie to have fun.

A/N: I hope you liked it. I have the next chapter done already, so it will probably be up Friday. One more thing which I just realized that I forgot to mention. For those of you that didn't read my last story, Jack and Maddie are engaged. I forgot to add anything about it in this story, so I'm sorry. They got engaged October 1st, for anyone who is wondering. It's hard writing a parallel story and making sure that everything is the same as it was in Glory Days and that I include everything. For the rest of this story though, the story lines are going to have a lot of similar things in them though, and their are a lot of parts that will fit in perfectly with parts that I mentioned but didn't go into detail on in my last story. So I might put links or at least let you know which chapter it correlates to in Glory Days so if you want more information or anything you can find it easily.


	25. Chapter 25

everpresentpast: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked it and you'll see whata happens with both Robbie's mother and Maddie this chapter. I hope you like it!

Bluehaven 4220: Yeah, Robbie's mother did need to hear that. You'll see this chapter if it helped at all. And I don't really know about premies from first hand experience, but I sort of based Maddie's experience on a story I heard about someone else. I tried to keep as believable and correct as possible, so hopefully I did a good job. Anyway, I didn't go into detail about the delivery and stuff in this story, because I did in my other one, but I hope you like the outcome. Thanks for the reivew.

meadow567: Okay, thanks. I couldn't remember and I tried to read through the chapters and find out if I did, but I couldn't find it. Anyway, thanks for the review and I hope you like this chapter too.

LaLaGirl33: Thank you so much! That's so nice of you to say. I'm glad you love the story and are hooked. Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 25

Robbie woke up just before seven on Christmas morning. By the time he was ready to go to Laura's, he still hadn't heard anything about Maddie, so he gave Rizzo Laura's home phone number and asked him to call when he heard something.

On the drive to Laura's, Robbie began getting a little nervous and hoped her parents liked him. He was mostly worried about her dad though. Robbie hadn't had the best experiences with girls' fathers in the past, and they weren't even girls he was dating at the time. In his freshman year of high school Robbie went to his crush's house to study, and after meeting her dad he decided that she wasn't worth the trouble of pursuing a relationship. Another girl's father lectured Robbie for over an hour before he took his daughter to prom. And the girl had asked him to prom in the first place! That didn't go too well either.

Shortly after eight, Robbie pulled up in front of Laura's house. The house didn't appear to be as big as Robbie's, but from the outside it appeared to have a cozy and welcoming feel. A wreath was on the door and the windows were decorated with Christmas lights. Just as Robbie began worrying that Laura might still be asleep and that he would have to meet her parents before seeing her, she ran out to greet him.

"Hey baby!" she screamed, and jumped into Robbie's arms. "Merry Christmas!" Laura gave him a kiss.

"Merry Christmas to you too. I can see you're excited to see me."

"I am. My family's excited to meet you too."

"Okay, let's go in then," Robbie said, trying to hide his nervousness.

Everyone was waiting in the living room when Robbie entered her house. Laura began introducing him to her family.

"Robbie, these are my parents," she said, motioning to them. "And this is my baby brother, Brandon." Brandon clearly wasn't a baby, but actually only a few years younger than Laura, but she always called him her 'baby brother' though. "My sister, Ashley, who I think you met at the beach last summer is with her fiancee and his family in Chicago."

"Yeah, I remember," Robbie told her, then looked at the rest of her family. "Hi," he said awkwardly and waved slightly. Laura's mother got up to shake his hand.

"It's so nice to meet you," she said. "You can call me Anna."

"Nice to meet you too. These are for you," Robbie said, handing her flowers.

"Thank you. That's so nice. Lilies are my favorite." She took the flowers and turned to her husband, who was still sitting on the couch. "Greg, where are your manners? Get up and introduce yourself."

Laura's father reluctantly got up and shook Robbie's hand without saying much. Robbie started having a really bad gut feeling that Laura's dad didn't like him. Both Laura and Anna seemed to notice the fear written all over Robbie's face.

"You can call him Greg," Anna said for her husband. "And don't let him intimidate you."

"Dad, you can stop with the overprotective father act. It didn't work on Michael and it won't work on Robbie." Laura explained that Michael was Ashley's fiancee.

"Sorry honey," he told Laura. "I just wanted to see how he'd react. I think I had him a little scared for a minute," Greg said with a smile. Robbie breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that it had been an act. "How's hockey going?" Greg then asked Robbie.

"Great. The team is coming along and I' having fun. I can't believe the games are only two months away though."

"I bet it went by fast."

"It has," Robbie replied. Then Laura spoke up.

"My dad loves hockey. Once I told him that you were a hockey player, he immediately liked you."

"Do you play? Or did you?"

"A little bit. But I didn't have the talent of an Olympic athlete, that's for sure. I was even good enough to play in college. But I did play throughout high school, and I grew up loving the North Stars."

"It's good to know we have something in common then," Robbie replied.

Laura, Robbie, and Laura's family talked a few minutes before sitting down for breakfast. Robbie really liked her parents and brother, and everything seemed to be going well so far.

"Before I forget," Robbie started, facing Laura. "I have some news."

"Good news?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," he said, hesitantly. "After you left last night, Maddie went into pre-term labor. She's in the hospital."

"Oh my God! Is she okay?"

"I haven't heard anything yet. Rizzo is calling here as soon as he hears anything."

"I hope everything's okay."

"Maddie's your friend that's working with the team, right?" Anna asked. "Jack's fiancee?"

"Yeah."

"Didn't you tell us she was due in February?" Greg asked.

"Valentine's Day actually. I hope she's okay," Laura said. Just then, the phone rang. "I'll get it!" Laura said, jumping up, hoping that it was a call about Maddie. "Hello?"

"Uh, hi. This is Riz - Mike Eruzione. Is Mac there? Er, actually, Robbie. Is Robbie there?" he asked. Oh yeah, and Merry Christmas. I'm sorry to bother everyone early on Christmas morning." Laura laughed quietly at Rizzo's awkwardness during the phone call. She decided to give him a hard time.

"Robbie who?"

"Uh, Robbie McClanahan. Or actually, I can talk to Laura instead."

"Laura who?" Rizzo then caught on.

"Laura, is that you?"

"Yeah , it's me. Merry Christmas!"

"Thanks. You too. I was calling to talk to you and Robbie actually."

"Is it about Maddie?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, I'll get Robbie on the other line." Once Robbie was on the phone in the kitchen, Rizzo started talking again.

"Maddie's doing okay. They had a rough night last night. Jack didn't go into much detail about that, but they have a baby girl. Isabelle Rose O'Callahan. Four pounds, six ounces, seventeen inches long."

"Aww," said Laura.

"So they're all okay then?" Robbie asked.

"Yep, everything's fine. I guess the baby's in the ICU, but the doctors think she should be fine. Apparently she's a fighter and actually pretty healthy for a premie. She was born at eleven twenty-seven last night."

A few minutes later, Laura and Robbie got off the phone with Rizzo and sat down for breakfast.

"This is delicious," Robbie said, eating a piece of cherry danish.

"Well, thank you, but I didn't make it. It's only from the bakery. I don't cook very well."

"I'm sure you're an excellent cook," said Robbie.

"He really knows how to win people over," commented Anna. "No wonder you like him so much Laura. He really lays on the compliments."

"Well, Robbie, from experience, I know she's not an excellent cook," Greg told him. "I've eaten more burnt meals than I can remember. And if Laura's ever cooked for you, then you have experienced Campbell cooking and know what I mean."

"Hey," Laura said. "I take offense to that. "I'm not that bad. Robbie likes some stuff I've made. And I made a turkey on Thanksgiving. That was edible."

Once they finished arguing over cooking skill, and finished breakfast, everyone went to the living room to open presents. Robbie was surprised that Laura's parents even got him a little something.

"This is so nice of you. Thank you so much, Mr. and Mrs. Campbell." Robbie got a pair of tickets to a North Stars game, a polo T-shirt, and a huge tin of Christmas cookies.

"You're welcome. But Mrs. Campbell is my mother-in-law, it makes me feel old."

"Sorry," Robbie said with an apologetic smile.

"The tickets were my idea," said Greg proudly.

"Who are you taking?" Anna asked.

"Laura," Robbie responded automatically.

"Told ya," Anna told both her husband and son.

"You can't take Laura. You have to take a guy," Brandon told him.

"Yeah, those tickets are meant to use to get away from Laura for a night. I know how too much of her can be," Greg said, joking. Laura hit her dad.

Laura and her brother opened their gifts, and then gave gifts to their parents. Lastly, Laura handed Robbie a couple boxes. In the first was a signed Danny Grant hockey card. Danny was Robbie's favorite player who was a left wing and played for the North Stars for several years.

"Thank you, Laura! I love it. Where in the world did you find this?"

"I have my ways," replied Laura.

"Thank you," Robbie said again, and gave her a hug. Robbie opened the next present, which was a pair of boxers and a T-shirt. When he read them, his face immediately turned red. He was only embarrassed because Laura's parents were sitting right there, watching them, and both the boxers and shirt were sexually suggestive.

"Like them?"

"Yeah, thanks," Robbie said. He really did like them. They were both hockey themed and the boxers said, "Wanna score with a hockey player?" and the shirt said, "Less teeth means more tongue."

"Don't worry, my parents already saw them. My dad thinks they're funny," Laura said, as if sensing Robbie's embarrassment and unsaid fears about what her parents were thinking.

"They are amusing," said Greg. Robbie was still embarrassed though. Greg continued. "Of course, I only decided that they were amusing after Laura informed me that seeing you in boxers and a shirt at least means you're wearing something." If at all possible, Robbie turned even more red after that comment.

"Open your last present," Laura told him. He opened the next box to find a little scrapbook with hockey pages revolving around the Olympics and the team and pages of memories of him and Laura over the past months.

"I love it, Laura." Robbie gave Laura a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek, quick enough so it wouldn't be awkward for everyone else in the room.

Laura and Robbie hung out for a while longer at Laura's house. Around four, they left to go to Robbie's. Robbie was very happy with the way their day had gone so far. Laura's parents made him feel really welcome and seemed to like him. Now he just hoped his family, actually his mother, got along with Laura today too.

"Merry Christmas everyone," Robbie said upon entering his house.

"Merry Christmas," David called back to Robbie and Laura.

"How was breakfast this morning?" Beth asked. Robbie had told them that he was going to meet Laura's family that morning.

"Great. I think they liked me."

"Laura, how have you been?" Beth asked.

"Good, thanks. My head's basically all better. And dinner smells delicious by the way."

"Well, we're just waiting on my sister, her husband, and David's parents, and then we'll eat," Beth told her.

Laura and the rest of Robbie's family sat down to dinner and enjoyed some conversation. Robbie thought Laura seemed more like herself this time too. She was talking more, laughing, and making jokes, overall acting like her normal outgoing self. He guessed it was because she was under the assumption that his family liked her. Robbie was sure that if Laura knew that his mother was still getting used to her, she would be nervous like she was the last time. Robbie was also happy that his mother didn't mention much about marriage, kids, and other future life plans.

After dinner and dessert, while everyone was in the living room, Robbie into the kitchen to refill Laura's drink, and pulled her with him.

"Are you having fun?" he asked.

"Yeah. Your family's great. I love your grandparents. And your grandfather is hilarious."

"I'm glad you're having a good time."

"Want to know the best part?"

"What's that?"

"That I'm with you," she said, and kissed him gently but deeply. When Laura and Robbie pulled away, Beth was standing in the doorway. Laura's face turned red upon seeing her.

"Hi Beth. Uh, okay. I'm gonna take my drink in there now," Laura said awkwardly.

"You don't have to be embarrassed. I'm actually glad to see some affection. I was beginning to think you two never showed anything for one another," commented Beth. Robbie shot his mother a warning glance.

Later that night, Robbie and Laura were standing in the hallway, saying good-bye to everyone. "Nice meeting you again Mr. and Mrs. McClanahan," Laura said to Robbie's grandparents. "And Merry Christmas everyone."

"You too, Laura," Robbie's grandfather said. "And Robbie, make sure you get lucky tonight. After all, it's Christmas. Guys deserve to get lucky on certain nights of the year and Christmas is one of them." Laura's face turned red and Robbie's jaw dropped.

"Grandpa!"

"Well, I'm just being honest. I always get lucky on Christmas. Ask your grandmother if you don't believe me."

"Ew!" exclaimed Noah and Natalie at the same time.

"Dad, please!" David said to his father. "No one needs to hear that information."

"We're leaving before this gets any more awkward," Robbie told Laura. He knew his grandfather was probably only joking, but sometimes it was hard to tell whether he was telling the truth or not. Either way, implication or not, it was still an over share.

"Not so fast!" said Noah, before Robbie and Laura could leave.

"What now?"

"You two lovebirds are standing under mistletoe," he pointed out.

Robbie looked at Laura and pulled her in for a kiss. When they broke, Robbie's grandfather shot another comment at them.

"That was no kiss! I didn't see any tongue."

"Grandpa!" Robbie yelled. He thought Laura suffered enough embarrassment already.

"That's okay," said Laura. She looked at the old man. "I like to keep things rated G in the presence of family members. We save everything PG and above for the privacy of his room." She said it in a joking enough tone so that everyone laughed at the comment, everyone except Beth that is. No one noticed her not laughing though.

Minutes later, Robbie and Laura were on their way to the dorms and Robbie's family began talking about Laura. Everyone liked her, but Beth still wasn't convinced.

"So let me get this straight," David said, after Beth explained her reasoning for not liking Laura. "First, you don't like her because she's too quiet, and doesn't show enough affection, and she's not committed. Now, you don't like her because you think she acts like a slut?"

"Did you hear what she was saying all night? They may have just as well gone at it in the living room. She made enough comments about their private lives!"

"That was my fault," said David's dad. "I brought all of that on."

"I wasn't just talking about the kiss thing. There were other things before that. And I really don't care who brought it on anyway. She still made the comments."

"You're way too hard on her. Laura's a nice girl. And she loves Robbie. Would you just let them be?" David asked Beth. Beth didn't want to argue with everyone on Christmas, so she decided to drop it. When she didn't say anything in response though, David continued. "I think you're just looking for things to be wrong with her."

"Not intentionally," Beth said to defend herself.

"Oh, I think it's intentional. Maybe not exactly conscious though."

Beth finally gave in, just to get her husband and everyone else off her back. "I suppose maybe I am a little hard on her. I guess I need to get used to her."

"If it's any consolation, I hated you at first," David's mother spoke up.

"What?"

"Oh, I did. I hated how good you were at cooking, and I absolutely hated your hair. And you were so disproportionate . . . your head seemed big on your shoulders, and your legs were boney compared to the rest of you. With that, I also thought you were loud and obnoxious. Oh yeah, and I thought you had the typical spoiled rich kid attitude. You thought just because-"

"We get it Mom," David said, cutting her off.

"I never knew that you didn't like me. I would have never guessed in a million years!"

"Well, I think it's a mother thing. No mother ever thinks a girl is good enough for their sons. Especially their oldest. I like you now though."

"What, may I ask, made you change your mind?" Beth asked her.

"After a couple months, I came to realize that you weren't going anywhere. When sabotaging your dates with Davie didn't work, I gave up. Eventually I just got used to your faults. And now I guess they're not all faults either. Just things that make us different from each other."

"I guess so," responded Beth, still surprised at this revelation.

"But I'll let you in on a little secret." David's mother leaned toward Beth to whisper in her ear. "Guys always end up marrying a girl that is in some ways similar to their mothers, maybe nothing that you can exactly see necessarily, but when she gets older, I can guarantee she'll be more like you than you can imagine." She winked at Beth and gave her a smile.

Hearing everything that her mother-in-law just confessed made her feel a little better about Laura. Maybe she was the right girl for Robbie. Beth would have to get to know her better, but now she at least had a little more incentive to.

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"So, you know what my grandpa said about me getting lucky tonight?" Robbie asked Laura once they were in his room. "What do you think my chances are?"

"Eh," Laura said, pretending to think it over hard. "Well, I guess your chances are pretty good. It could really go either way though."

"Is there any way I can help to convince you?"

"Maybe," Laura said, as Robbie pulled her close and kissed her deeply, his tongue exploring her mouth, and his hands resting on her hips, and then slightly moving up her shirt. "You're doing a pretty good job," Laura said. She laid down on the bed and pulled Robbie on top of her. "As a matter of fact, I think I'm sold."

"Good," he said, moving his lips to her neck and his hands to the button and zipper on her pants.

A/N: Hope everyone liked it. And if anyone wants to read about the baby being born or anything, it's in Glory Days. I couldn't get the links to the chapters in here, because it wouldn't work, but it's chapters 21 and 22. The next chapter for this story will be up sometime next week.


	26. Chapter 26

everpastpresent: I'm glad you like it, and the twist with Mrs. McClanahan not liking Laura. Thanks for the review!

LaLaGirl33: lol. I'm glad. I decided to make him funny and stuff, cause with Mrs. McClanahan being really uptight, I needed something funny too. Thanks for reviewing and enjoy this chapter!

meadow567: I do remember the breakfast thing, and I know it was in my last story, but then I couldn't find it in this one and gave up looking. I didn't look very hard though. The part about David's mom not liking Beth at first I thought would be a good little twist, so I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for the review and enjoy the chapter!

Bluehaven4220: Thanks, I tried to make it as believable and stuff as possible. And I'm glad you've enjoyed the story so far. Here's another chapter for you!

A/N: Sorry I couldn't update sooner. This week has been crazy and so busy. It's been awful. I finally had a day (today) to relax a little and write this chapter. Hopefully I'll be quicker posting the chapter after this. I hope you all enjoy it!

Chapter 26

The day after Christmas, Robbie, Laura, Buzz, and Gail went to visit Maddie in the hospital after the guys finished practice. They looked into her room and saw Maddie and Jack sitting on the bed and Maddie holding the baby.

"Hey Maddie. How are you doing?" Laura asked, walking into the room with everyone else following behind her.

"Hey," Maddie said, looking up with a smile at everyone. "I'm good."

"The baby is adorable," said Gail. Gail and Laura walked closer to get a good look at the baby, who then yawned.

"Awww," the girls said simultaneously.

"This is Isabelle," said Maddie, with another smile.

"She is the cutest little thing," said Gail.

"Yeah, isn't she cute?" Laura asked the guys standing behind her. Robbie did think the baby was cute, but he didn't get why she was such a big deal either. It was just a baby after all. He assumed that it must be a girl thing.

"How's parenthood?" Robbie asked, more to OC than Maddie, but they both answered.

"Great."

A few minutes later, Buzz was holding Isabelle and talking to her.

"Why are you talking to her?" Robbie asked. "She can't understand you." Laura explained that they needed to be talked to and actually understand more than people think.

"I can tell someone never had younger siblings," said Gail.

"I do, but I was practically a baby myself when they were born. They're only three years younger than me."

"They're twins?" Gail wondered out loud.

"Yeah. Twins actually run in my family."

"Mine too," said Laura. Robbie was surprised to hear that. He had no idea twins ran in Laura's family.

"Wonderful," he said under his breath. Everyone laughed and then he looked at Laura, realizing she must have been joking about the twin thing. "Wait. You don't have any twin siblings."

"I know, but there are five sets of twins in my family." Laura went on to list her family members that were twins.

"Seriously?" Robbie asked. He could barely believe it. Twins were such a handful, and Robbie only remembered his brother and sister being a handful when he was older. He couldn't even imagine dealing with two babies. "You should have told me that earlier. It should have been your disclaimer when we met. 'Caution - I make babies in twos,'" he said.

"What's wrong with twins?" Laura asked, as everyone else was laughing.

"There's two of them! At once."

"Aw, baby, it's okay. That's why God gave you two hands," Laura said, wrapping her arms around him. Robbie just rolled his eyes in response.

After talking and taking turns holding the baby, Robbie, Laura, Buzz, and Gail left to let Maddie rest. The whole way home, Laura and Gail sat in the backseat of the car, talking about the baby. Robbie and Buzz were in the front seat, having their own conversation, but also listening to the girls talk about Isabelle and babies in general. Robbie had to admit that it was cute listening to them.

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A few days before New Year's, Maddie and the baby came home from the hospital. Laura spent her free time that day in Maddie's room, because she loved Isabelle and being around her. She had visited Maddie and the baby in the hospital every day and kept her company when OC was at practices and games.

Robbie began noticing that Laura being with the baby constantly seemed to make her want a baby, which scared him. Before Isabelle was born, Robbie sometime envisioned him and Laura being in OC and Maddie's shoes someday, but after Isabelle was born, it was that much more real. Robbie suddenly couldn't imagine being in OC's shoes. His unsureness was especially evident when Izzy would cry or her diaper would need to be changed, and sometimes even just seeing someone constantly holding and taking care of her. It wasn't that he didn't want kids someday, but that was the keyword. Someday.

The next day after practice, Maddie left Robbie and OC alone with Isabelle while she went to put a load of laundry in the washer. Izzy started screaming almost as soon as Maddie left, and OC picked her up right away.

"Aw, sweetie, don't cry. It's okay. What's wrong?" OC asked, gently rocking her in his arms. Robbie just sat there and watched OC try to calm the baby down. He gave OC a lot of credit for being a dad. It looked a lot harder than he ever would have imagined. Izzy was still crying and OC just couldn't stop her.

"Please stop crying, Izzy. Mommy'll be right back. I'm not that bad to be with. Please don't cry." Jack turned to Robbie. "Can you get her to stop crying? I don't know what's wrong."

"Don't look at me. I don't know a thing about babies. You're the expert."

"Yeah, right. I'm no expert. I'm still getting used to everything about being a father."

"I can see that." Robbie continued to watch OC rock Izzy. She finally calmed down. Maddie walked back in the room a minute later.

"How's my baby?"

"I'm doing pretty good," Jack answered, though he knew she wasn't talking about him. As Maddie took a now happy Izzy from his hands, Jack said, "Oh, that baby. She's great. We had no problems at all. She's just a happy little camper. Right Izzy?" he asked rubbing her cheek.

Robbie watched OC, Maddie, and Izzy for a minute, who were in their own little world. They were such a cute family and just as Robbie tried to imagine himself doing that someday, Laura walked in the room.

"How's my favorite little girl?" she asked, walking over to take the baby from Maddie. "Mind if I hold her?" she asked, not really waiting for a response. Maddie handed Izzy over to Laura. "I missed not seeing you all day. Did you miss me? I bet you would have rather been with me than go to hockey practice with all those smelly boys," Laura said.

"Excuse me, but one of those smelly boys is her father," OC said.

"And another, and more important, is your boyfriend," Robbie chimed in. Laura smiled at him. "I can't believe you didn't even say hi to me. How come Izzy is all of a sudden more important than me, huh?"

"Because she's cute," Laura responded.

"Fine, I see how it is," Robbie said, pretending to be hurt.

"Well, you're cute too, but she's a baby."

"You better watch it, Laur. If you're too mean to me, I'll hold it against you."

"Ha. I know you too well. You'd only pretend to be mad and boycott having sex a couple days. And trust me, I can go without it longer than you." Robbie didn't respond, because he knew she had a point.

Laura held Izzy for a few more minutes before leaving the room with Robbie. She just loved being around the baby. Laura had always wanted kids someday, but now she wanted kids that much more. Until she reached college, she just assumed that's what everyone did. Grow up, get married, have kids. She was never a huge fan of babies or kids in general though. They were okay, but Laura would much rather be with friends, go shopping, or party than be around a baby. Ever since she became friends with Maddie though, and especially after Izzy was born, Laura couldn't get enough of babies. She imagined what her kids would look like someday, and she often thought of names that sounded good with McClanahan.

That was what scared her. It wasn't the concept of being a mother, but that Robbie didn't feel the same way about having kids someday. If he even still planned on being together for that matter. They never actually talked about it, but Laura noticed that Robbie never had much to say about Izzy, and he hardly ever wanted to hold her or even be near her. Not like her at least.

Later that night, Robbie went out with the guys on the team, and Laura stayed at the dorms with Maddie, Gail, and Izzy. The girls mainly talked about Robbie, OC, and Buzz. Laura told the girls everything she was thinking about her situation with Robbie. It wasn't that she was having doubts about their relationship, but she was just confused.

Lately it seemed to Laura like she and Robbie went through the motions of being a couple. They were together a lot, said they loved each other, and everything else, but neither mentioned anything about the future. Laura told the girls how she was worried that Robbie didn't want a future together, and was worried that their relationship would dissolve after the Olympics were over. She just wished she knew what he was thinking. Maddie finally convinced Laura to tell him everything she just told the girls, because he probably had the same concerns.

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The next few days, Laura put off talking to Robbie. She knew she should do it, and sooner rather than later, but every time she started to bring it up, she quickly backed out of it. Laura also put off the conversation because things started seeming better. Robbie was around Izzy more, and seemed to be more comfortable with her.

"Izzy was so cute tonight," Robbie told Laura late one night after he came home from OC's room. OC had the guys over to watch a Minnesota verse Boston game while the three girls spent time without the baby, which gave Maddie a very needed break.

"What did she do?"

"Well, first, she was wearing the little blue sports outfit thingy that we gave them at the shower."

"The onesie?" Laura asked.

"Yeah. Then she was just happily watching the game with us. OC was holding her and she only cried when he was upset because Minnesota did something good and Boston did something bad. And she just kept looking at OC with her big, blue, baby eyes. It was like she knew exactly who OC was. She was just adorable."

"Izzy is cute, that's for sure." Laura decided to bite the bullet. "I can't wait to have a baby someday. I hope mine are just as cute." She looked over at Robbie to gauge his expression, which didn't appear to be scared at the thought at all.

"I know. But your kids will have no problem there, because if they look anything like you, they'll be beautiful." Laura smiled at the compliment. Robbie continued before he knew what was coming out of his mouth. "And even if they get some of my looks, I think we'd have a pretty cute baby."

Laura registered the words and realized what he was insinuating. Instead of making it into an awkward situation though, Laura slightly changed the course of the conversation. "Do you want kids someday?"

"Yeah. I always have. And now that I'm around a baby every day, I want even more. At first though, Izzy made me think kids might be too big a handful. But seeing OC with her, I know it's going to be worth it," Robbie answered truthfully. "Do you want kids?"

"Yeah. Even more now. Before I wanted them, but not as much as I do now. I can sort of picture myself as a mother someday. It's a little scary too, because when I think of myself a few years ago, actually, earlier this year, I can't picture that Laura ever being a mom and responsible for another life."

Robbie laughed. "I know what you mean. Well, not about you, but me. It's weird how much people change over time, and grow up. So how many kids do you want?"

"I don't know. I haven't really thought about it. At least two, but not more than four. What about you?"

"Two. Maybe three. But I'd want them spaced like three or four years apart. It's easier to handle them. I know what my parents went through raising three kids under the age of four at once."

"Yeah. I liked having a sister only two years older than me, but I know she hated it at times. I would constantly want to be exactly like her. And I always stole her clothes. But I think that happens with all same sex siblings. Having a brother five years younger than me is nice too, because I really felt like the big sister when he was born. I was also a help to my mom, because I loved taking care if him."

"I hope you weren't like the typical big sister and always dressing him up and treating him like a doll though."

"It was worse than you can imagine. Ashley and I pretended he was our baby and we fought over him constantly."

"Poor kid," Robbie laughed.

"And that's exactly it. It didn't stop when he was no longer a baby. Into our teens we dressed him up and one time we even gave him a make over."

"How? I would have run away."

"He tried. But then Ashley tied him to a chair." Robbie started laughing harder. "I still have the pictures. It was hilarious."

"I'm glad I didn't have an older sister."

"If you thought that was bad, I have a lot of stories that will make that seem like nothing." Robbie looked at her surprised, wondering what could possibly be worse.

Robbie and Laura shared some family stories for the rest of the night, and talked a little more about having kids, though neither exactly came right out and said anything directly. They each mentioned things casually, and tried to get a feel for how the other felt. A possible future together was more implied than anything, but both were satisfied with the talking they did do.


	27. Chapter 27

meadow567: Glad you liked it. Thanks for the review.

Bluehaven4220: You might be seeing a turn around. And you'll see more of that in this chapter. Thanks for the review and I'm glad you enjoyed that chapter!

everpresentpast: Thanks, Izzy will be making more appearances in future chapters. I hope you like this chapter too!

NellieBly413672: Thank you so much for all of the reviews! I'm just gonna write one long response. First, I'm glad you liked all the chapters, and the Christmas part. I tried to make it a little different from Glory Days, that way it wouldn't be boring reading the same thing. And with Mac's mom, I needed to have some drama, so you'll see soon how everything plays out with that. Thanks again so much for all of the great reviews. Oh yeah, and speaking of liking Mac and Laura talking things out...

A/N: Okay, this is a pretty long chapter, filled with drama. At first, I thought about breaking it up so it wouldn't be so long, but then I changed my mind. Now there won't be a mean cliff hanger either. I decided to give my fantastic readers a nice little present because I got to 100 reviews!! So thanks to everyone who is reading in general and reviewing, because they keep me writing. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys the chapter.

Chapter 27

In early January, Robbie was told to see Herb after practice one afternoon. He had no idea what it was about, but began getting worried. Until then, he really thought his spot was safe, there were other guys that he thought were more likely to get cut. Walking up to Herb's office, Robbie began feeling more and more uneasy. Herb's office door was open, and he tapped lightly on it to get his coach's attention.

"Come on in Mac," Herb said. Robbie walked in slowly and hesitantly, trying to decipher what Herb was thinking. Herb seemed to pick up on Robbie's nerves right away. "You look worried."

"Uh, I am, a little I guess," he said.

"Don't worry, nothing's wrong. I wanted to give you a message. Scotty Bowman called earlier today."

Robbie knew exactly who Scotty Bowman was. The GM and coach of the Buffalo Sabres. Him calling could really only mean one thing and Robbie began getting excited. "Did he make me an offer or something?" Robbie asked, hopeful.

"I don't know the details, but he left his number," Herb said, handing him a piece of paper.

"Thanks, coach."

"Good luck," Herb said before Robbie left the room.

Immediately, Robbie went to his room to call Scotty back. This morning, the NHL was just a dream, but now it looked like it might actually happen.

Scotty had wanted to make Robbie an offer. Although Robbie couldn't sign anything until after the Olympics, it was official. As soon as the games were over, he would be a Buffalo Sabre.

Robbie called his family next, who was ecstatic for him, like he knew they would be. His mother dampened the situation though by bringing up the issue of Laura. Robbie hadn't even thought of how Laura would take the news. He knew what happened last time he told her that he was going to Buffalo, and that conversation hadn't gone well. She made it pretty clear that she didn't want to join him.

After thinking about it a little more, Robbie decided to put of telling Laura, until he found a way to not sound like he was pressuring her into anything.

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The next afternoon, the final cut was made. Robbie went out with the guys to celebrate officially making the team that night. Even though everyone was upset that Coxie was cut, they were relieved they themselves weren't. Now they thought the rest of the road to the Olympics would be a little less pressured. Not that they thought Herb would go any easier on them, but they would at least not have the constant worry of being cut.

With the Olympics coming so soon, the guys began talking about what they were planning on doing after the games. Robbie found out that a few of the guys have been talking to the NHL teams that they had been drafted to. Jimmy had an offer from the Flames, and Silky and Morrow were talking to GM's for the Rangers and Islanders respectively, and most excitingly, Rammer spoke with Scotty Bowman the week before. Apparently, Scotty wanted to sign both Rammer and Robbie after the Olympics.

"I'll be awesome if we play together some more," Rammer said.

"I know, that'll be great. Hey guys, make sure none of you mentions this to Laura, okay? I'm still trying to figure out what to say exactly," Robbie told everyone.

"A little advice, Mac. Tell her soon," OC said. "I know from personal experience that girls get a lot madder if you keep it a secret for too long."

"I know. I just don't want to mess anything up."

"Yeah," Verchota spoke up. "Last time he asked Laura to move to Buffalo with him, she dumped him."

"Ouch," commented Silky.

"That wasn't exactly what happened," said Robbie in defense.

"Well, more or less," said Verchota. Robbie just shrugged. He knew OC was right though. He needed to tell Laura soon. Besides, he started getting the feeling that Laura knew something was up.

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The following afternoon, Laura was waiting for Robbie outside of the locker room. She wanted to surprise him and take him to dinner to celebrate his officially making the team. Laura had noticed that he was a little uptight the past few days, and she assumed it was because the guys all knew the final cut was coming. Now that it was over though, Laura figured that Robbie would want to celebrate and enjoy himself.

Robbie saw Laura waiting for him, and thought of the irony. He had just decided to tell Laura about the Sabres that night, and now she was waiting for him. Ultimately, Robbie decided not to ask Laura to move to Buffalo at all. He figured that if he told her he was going, and she wanted to come along, she would. If not . . . well, Robbie didn't want to think about that. He really hoped she would want to come.

"Laur, I need to tell you something," he said, before she could even tell him why she was there.

"Okay, but can it wait until we're at dinner. I wanted to take you out to celebrate you making the final cut."

"Sure," he said, happy to be able to put the conversation off a little longer.

Throughout dinner, Robbie and Laura talked, but nothing was said about Robbie's news. They had been having such a good time, and Robbie didn't want to take the chance on ruining their night.

Later that night, while they were laying in bed and getting ready to go to sleep, Laura remembered that he wanted to tell her something.

"Weren't you going to tell me something earlier?" she asked.

"Oh yeah," Robbie said. He looked at her, and tried to contain the excited expression on his face. "The Sabres want me to sign with them after the Olympics!"

"Oh my God! Seriously? Congratulations!" Laura said and kissed him. She was happy for him, but in the back of her mind, the conversation she had with Maddie a few nights before replayed in her head.

"Thanks. I can hardly believe it," Robbie said. "It's the opportunity of a lifetime. The NHL!" he added, with a big smile. Although he was truly excited and smiling, Robbie was trying to read Laura's expression at the same time. She looked happy, but he trying to read what she really thought about Buffalo.

"So, you're definitely signing then, right?" Laura asked, assuming he wouldn't pass up the opportunity.

"Yeah. I'll be starting there after the Olympics. Like March 9th or something."

"Wow, that is right after."

"Yeah, I won't really get a break, but that's okay. It'll be worth it. And it's nice because it'll finally be a paying job."

"Yeah, I bet."

"I'll need to get an apartment and everything though so I'll probably have to start looking soon."

Laura was wondering when the question was coming. The one about her joining him. It didn't. After a few minutes of going on about playing there with Rammer, and how a bunch of the other guys were getting calls too, the conversation ended so they could go to sleep.

"Congratulations again, Robbie, the future NHL star. I love you." Laura gave him a kiss and rolled over, facing away from him.

By the time Laura turned over so Robbie couldn't see her face, her eyes began watering. She blinked to keep the tears back. Laura didn't want Robbie to see or hear her crying. She had no idea why he hadn't asked her to move with him. It would be hard, but she'd do it in heartbeat. She loved him. Laura came to the conclusion that Robbie obviously didn't love her as much, and didn't want her to move with him. That was the only reason she could think of that he hadn't asked her. The thought made her sadness quickly change to anger and she wiped the tears from her eyes. She was more mad at herself for not telling Robbie how she really felt sooner, because apparently they didn't feel the same way and now Laura knew she was going to get hurt.

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The next couple of weeks went by, and the Olympics were right around the corner. In four days, the guys were leaving for Madison Square Garden for their last pre-Olympic game, which was against the Soviets.

Since Robbie told Laura about Buffalo, they both avoided talking about it anymore. Laura had a reason to avoid the topic, but she wondered why Robbie stopped mentioning it as well. After all, he was so excited about it, and normally when someone was excited about something, they constantly talked about it.

At the same time, Robbie also started doubting his relationship with Laura. He was under the assumption that she didn't want to come with him to Buffalo. Since she hadn't mentioned anything since the day he told her, he knew she was avoiding talking about it. Before that, Robbie was starting to think that Laura was on the same page as him for once, but he guessed his misread her feelings again. Robbie didn't know what to do though. He still didn't know what was going to happen to him and Laura after the Olympics, but he needed to figure everything out soon, because he was leaving in four days.

Both Robbie and Laura continually tried to pretend that everything was completely normal. When they were apart though, both were consulting their friends for advice. Laura talked to Maddie about the situation daily, with Maddie telling her the same thing every time. It was that she had to talk to Robbie and stop avoiding.

Robbie talked to almost everyone on the team, but didn't like the advice he was given. Mark, Rizzo, and Jimmy told him to talk to Laura, while Verchota and Silky told him not to worry about it.

"Laura's just a girl," Verchota told him. "Don't give up your dreams for her."

"I wasn't planning on it," Robbie said, not really liking the advice he was getting.

"Yeah, there are plenty of girls in Buffalo. Just pick one of them," Silky said.

"But I love Laura," Robbie explained.

"But you can't make Laura move. Personally, I wouldn't want to move to Buffalo if I were her."

"Have you even asked her?" Bah then asked, involving himself in the conversation.

"Well, a while ago I did."

"But that was before you started dating this time, right? And didn't you say she's changed? Maybe she's changed her mind about Buffalo too," said Bah, not waiting for responses after his questions. Robbie still didn't like what he was hearing and decided to ask the only other person he thought might be able to help.

Walking down the hall, he knocked on OC's door. He answered with Izzy in his arms, who had apparently just been crying.

"What's up?"

"Can I ask for advice?" Robbie asked. "Or is this a bad time?"

"No, but you're asking me for advice?" OC asked, with a surprised expression. "What about?"

"Laura," Robbie said with a sigh.

"You're asking me for girl advice?" OC asked, incredulously. "You must be desperate. Girls aren't my specialty."

"But you must have done something right. You have Maddie," Robbie pointed out.

"Okay, fine, but I'll make no guarantees." OC motioned to let Robbie in. "What's up?"

Robbie sighed and explained everything.

"So, let me get this straight," OC said. "You don't want to ask Laura to move with you, because you're afraid she'll say no?"

"Basically," Robbie responded, shrugging. It sounded a lot sillier when OC put it in those terms though. _It makes me sound like I need to-_

"Grow some balls and ask her!" OC said. "You really are an idiot." OC stood up. "Well, I think that's all the advice I have."

"Wait, OC," Robbie said, before OC pushed him out of the room.

"Look, Mac. I know Laura loves you. If you ask her to move, she probably will. Of course it'll be a little hard at first, and she might say no or hesitate at first, but I bet she will come around."

"What if she doesn't though?"

"Then she doesn't love you as much as you deserve." OC paused for a minute. "But you know what? I think she does."

"Thanks OC," Robbie said. He was now pretty convinced. OC was the first to tell him what he needed to hear. He didn't sugarcoat it at all, saying Laura would be completely enthusiastic about moving, and he didn't tell him to not care about her feelings either. Robbie couldn't wait any longer to talk to Laura and decided to do it right away. He still didn't know exactly what he was going to say, but decided to just wing it.

Getting back to his room, Robbie was surprised that Laura wasn't there. After looking all over for her, he finally found out that she had gone somewhere with Maddie. Since Robbie didn't expect her back for a while, he decided to just wait in his room and do a little research first, he needed a phone book.

In the meantime, Maddie and Laura were at the mall, not really because they were shopping, but because Laura needed to talk to Maddie about Robbie.

"I can't take it anymore. It's like he doesn't want a future. I don't know whether it's me, or just the way he is. You would think I would know by now, especially after dating on and off for as long as we have, but I don't." Maddie didn't respond but continued to listen to Laura as she vented about Robbie. "Ugh, I'm so mad! He promised things would be different. And stupid, naive me believed him. And, with everything he's said the past few weeks especially, I thought for sure he wanted to be together forever. Do you even know how many times he's hinted at the thought of having a baby together?" Laura didn't wait for an answer. "Too many to count!"

"Laura, I don't want to sound like a jerk or whatever, but have you talked to him at all about this?"

"Well, no. But he's the one moving away. Shouldn't he ask me if I want to go with him. I shouldn't be asking to tag along. Especially if he doesn't want me there or something."

"Laura, Robbie loves you. And I bet he wants you there. But did you ever think that he might be thinking the same things as you. Maybe he doesn't think you want a future and doesn't want to ask you to pick up everything and move."

"But what if I tell him how I feel and he doesn't feel the same way? What if I was misreading everything? Then I'll get hurt."

"Well, you'll get hurt whether you tell him how you feel and leaves, or if he leaves without you telling him how you feel. Wouldn't you rather at least know how he feels too?"

"I guess. But he's just being so stubborn! If he wants me to move, why hasn't he asked?" Maddie shrugged in response. The girls went back to the dorms shortly thereafter and Laura went to see Izzy before heading to Robbie's room.

As the girls entered the room, Maddie mouthed to OC, "Don't mention Robbie."

"Where's my favorite niece?"

"She's sleeping," OC said, pointing to her bassinet. Laura walked over quietly and looked inside to see Izzy sleeping peacefully. After watching her a couple minutes, Laura said good-bye to Maddie and OC and started to leave the room.

"Oh, Laura. By the way, I think Mac wanted to see you. He was looking for you earlier."

"Well, in that case, I might stay here for a while," Laura said, sitting on the bed and making herself comfortable.

Maddie looked over at OC. "Thanks a lot," she whispered sarcastically. She knew that Laura would start talking about the problems between her and Robbie.

"I'm so sick of waiting! In like three weeks, he'll be in Buffalo. That's like, one thousand miles away. If he thinks I'm doing a long distance relationship, he's totally wrong. I have enough trouble being in near . . . " Laura paused, trying to get the right word. She couldn't exactly, so just continued, "near . . . distance, or whatever, relationships as it is!"

"Please don't wake up Isabelle. I just got her to sleep," OC begged, wishing he listened to Maddie when she told him not to mention Mac. Laura quieted down, but didn't acknowledge his words.

"I just don't wanna lose him," she whispered, choking back tears and placing her head in her hands. OC and Maddie both looked at each other, trying to decide what to do. Finally Maddie walked over and rubbed her back, trying to comfort and calm her friend down.

"Laura, just talk to him. I promise it will help." Maddie really didn't know what else to say to convince her. It made her really glad that she and OC usually talked about their problems.

Laura wiped her face and looked up. "All right. I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm crying. He's just being stupid. And all men are stupid. It's nothing to cry over. I'll talk to him."

Laura left the room and left Maddie and OC alone.

"They need a serious intervention or something," Maddie commented.

"You're telling me," said OC. "Mac came over here a little while ago and asked for my advice too. They're both incredibly stubborn, and it's to the point where I don't know how much advice will actually help them. Nothing we say gets through to them."

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Laura walked to Robbie's room and knocked on the closed door. He answered within a few seconds.

"Hey Laura."

"Hey."

"I'm glad you're here, cause I need to talk to you."

"Well, I'm here because I need to talk to you too." Robbie opened the door wider to let Laura in.

"You first," Laura said.

"No, you."

"Fine. I can't do this anymore."

"Do what?" Robbie asked, fearing the answer. He thought he knew exactly what she meant. Their conversation a little less than a year ago came flooding back to Robbie. It had begun almost the same exact way.

"This," she said, motioning between them. "Us." Robbie shook his head. He didn't want to hear it. A million thoughts began racing through his head, so many he couldn't even sort them out before Laura continued. "I mean, I love you, I really do. But I can't keep living day to day, waiting for what's going to happen next. You're leaving in four days. In three weeks, the Olympics will be over. What's gonna happen to us?"

Robbie stopped thinking to hear her say those last words very clearly. "Wait, you're saying . . . I mean, you're not breaking up with me?"

"I don't really know what I'm saying. I sort of need to know what you're thinking."

"I'm thinking that I love you, and I want to be together."

"Robbie, you know we can't do this though."

"Do what?"

"Let me run this by you again. In three weeks, you're going to be leaving, for good. We've never talked about what that means for us. Are we going to wait until the day before you leave?"

"What do you want me to say?" Robbie asked, raising his voice. "That I love you and don't want to lose you either? That I can't see myself without you and that I can't imagine what it would be like not having you in my life? That everything would be so much easier if you would move to Buffalo so we could be together?" Robbie hadn't really meant to ask the last question, but it felt sort of good letting that out. He didn't expect an answer to any of the questions either, and was surprised when he got one.

"Yes," Laura answered, almost inaudibly. Then louder, but still half mumbling with her head down she added, "Yes to everything." She looked up at Robbie, who smiled.

"Wait. You want me to say that everything would be easier if you moved to Buffalo?" Laura nodded. Robbie decided to try it. "Laura, everything would be easier if you moved to Buffalo with me." Laura smiled at his joking around.

"Yeah, it would."

"Last time that suggestion didn't sit well with you though."

"Last time I was being stupid. I was surprised and confused, and I don't know what else," Laura told him.

"That's why I didn't ask. I didn't think you wanted to move."

"But I love you," Laura said, implying that love was enough to get her to move.

"I love you too."

After a few seconds of silence, Laura spoke up. "You haven't asked me yet." Robbie laughed nervously.

"You're right." After getting the right words together, Robbie began. "Laura, I know your life is in Minnesota, but I love you and can't imagine not being with you. Will you come with me?"

"I'd love to," Laura responded, smiling. "On one condition," she added. "From now on, we _have_ to talk. No more avoiding things and bottling things up, because it's ridiculous. And besides that, it's going to lead to things ending badly."

"Okay. But I think we've agreed to talk numerous times, and it doesn't work," Robbie pointed out.

"Just humor me."

"All right. I promise." Laura leaned in to kiss him. After making out a few minutes, before things got too heated, they broke apart. "Well, if I'm moving, we need to make plans. My guess is that you don't have anywhere to live yet, and that's only one issue. If we're picking up everything in three weeks time, we need to make serious plans."

"There's a job opening at WKBW. It's a news station," Robbie said.

"How do you know that?" Laura asked.

"After OC convinced me to ask you about moving, I decided to have a list of good things about Buffalo to try to convince you if I need be."

"Let me see this list."

"But you're already moving."

"I wanna see it anyway."

"Well, that was actually the only thing on it so far. It took a lot longer than I expected to search for jobs in Buffalo."

"How exactly did you go about doing that?"

"I called WCCO here and asked if they knew of news stations in Buffalo. I got the phone numbers and made some calls. I talked to someone from WKBW and they said that one of their anchors was going on maternity leave in the middle of March. They need someone to fill in and they said whoever they hired would continue to work after she came back."

"Wow. You went though all of that for me? Just to see if there was a job opening?" Robbie nodded, looking pretty proud of himself. "Well, you deserve an award for that. I don't have one, but I know something that will probably be a little better," Laura said, closing the gap between them and kissing him.

"Didn't you want to start planning our move?" Robbie asked, pulling away slightly.

"That can wait," Laura whispered, pulling Robbie close again.


	28. Chapter 28

everpresentpast: Thanks for the review! I'm glad I made you happy. Enjoy this chapter too.

meadow567: Yeah, and I'm actually going to go past the Olympics a little to show them in Buffalo. Thanks for the review!

Bluehaven 4220: I'm glad you liked the chapter. Sorry I couldn't get this one up sooner though. I'm glad that everyone approves of Laura moving to Buffalo :) I do aim to please, lol.

NellieBly413672: Nope, Mac and OC can't admit it. But guys are stubborn, what can I say? I'm glad I made your day with the update, and I hope you like this chapter too.

A/N: I'm glad I made everyone happy with Laura moving to Buffalo! My story is going to continue there a little, so you'll see more of them. Which brings me to another point. There's only going to be about ten more chapters in this story. I just wanted to give you a heads up. I do have another story in the works though, but it won't be a spin off from this story. Anyway, enjoy the chapter and please review!!

Chapter 28

The morning after Robbie asked Laura to join him in Buffalo, he called his parents. Since he was leaving in a few days for New York, he wanted to make sure they were set to come to Lake Placid early the next week. Robbie waited until Laura left for the news station to call. His father answered the phone.

"Hi Dad."

"Hey Robbie. What's going on?"

"I was calling about next week and stuff. You're all set with everything, right?"

"Yep. I've got the tickets, the room, and the flight's booked. You said Laura booked her own flight, right?"

"Yeah, she's flying in Tuesday morning. Unfortunately she couldn't get tickets to all of the games though."

"Don't worry about that," he said, going on to explain that he had tickets for Laura.

"Speaking of Laura . . . she's moving to Buffalo with me after the games."

"That's great. Your mother will be surprised about that."

"She doesn't like Laura too much, does she?"

"It's not that she doesn't like her. She just needs to get used to her. If she sees that Laura really loves you, I'm sure she'll change her mind. I think being with us during the games will help."

"I hope so," Robbie said. A few minutes later, Robbie said goodbye to his father and then went to practice.

After practice that night, Laura and Robbie offered to babysit Izzy while Maddie and Jack had a night to themselves. Actually, it was Laura that offered, she just included Robbie without really running it by him at all. Laura was excited for the chance to be playing mom for a few hours, while Robbie wasn't as enthused. He had a feeling the night would be completely revolved around the baby. Robbie understood why. After all, Izzy was just a baby and needed attention. Robbie had planned on going out with some of the guys that night though, but now he'd be stuck playing with a few week old baby.

"Hey Maddie. Come on in," Robbie said after Maddie arrived to his room. He explained that Laura would be back in a minute. When Maddie walked in the room, Robbie did all he could to contain his wide eyes expression. It looked like Izzy was moving into Robbie's room. Maddie brought a playpen, carrier and diaper bag, which was filled with clothes, diapers, baby wipes, bottles, containers of milk, and a bunch of other things Robbie had no idea what he would do with. "Is she staying here a week?" he finally managed to ask before Maddie went on to explain what everything was for.

Robbie wished Laura had been back by now. There was no way he would remember everything Maddie just told him. He had some comfort in the fact that Laura would probably know what to do though.

Maddie was ready to leave before Laura got back, but Robbie assured her that everything would be fine. He didn't completely believe his words as he spoke them, but figured Maddie needed some assurance to calm her visible nerves about leaving Izzy.

Once Maddie was gone, Robbie bent down in front of the carrier that Izzy was still strapped in and looked at her. She just stared back at him for a minute, not doing anything. Robbie hoped it would stay that way, at least until Laura came back. It was like Izzy read Robbie's mind then though, because she started crying.

"Oh crap," Robbie said out loud, not having a clue what was wrong. Luckily, Laura came back in the room and came right over to the carrier, picking Izzy up.

"Shhh, it's okay. I got ya," she said in a comforting tone, making Izzy immediately stop crying. "She just was bored in her carrier and wanted to be held," Laura told Robbie.

Robbie was amazed at Laura's natural motherly instinct. He'd seen it a little before, but he never saw her just pick up Izzy and talk to her to get her to stop crying. Laura knew what was wrong right away.

"What?" Laura asked, noticing Robbie's smile.

"Nothing," he responded. "It's just that you're really good with her." Robbie wrapped an arm around Laura's waist as kissed her as she continued to talk to Izzy.

A little while later, Robbie and Laura were both playing with the baby. They had Izzy laying on the floor on a blanket. Robbie began getting the hang of keeping Izzy occupied and happy. He tried making her laugh, but instead was having more success making Laura laugh.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"You," she replied, giggling. "What are you doing anyway?"

"Playing with Izzy," was the response.

"That didn't exactly answer the question," Laura teased him.

After Robbie played a few baby games with Izzy, he began taking toys out of Izzy's diaper bag. Throwing her clothes and diapers on the floor, Robbie found rattles and stuffed animals at the bottom. He was so focused on the baby that he didn't even notice when Laura walked away for a few minutes. Suddenly, he began smelling something which he only could imagine was Izzy's diaper.

"Oh, Izzy!" Robbie waved a hand in front of his face. He turned around and noticed Laura was no where in sight. "Laura!" he called. "It's your turn with the baby." Robbie looked back at Izzy, who was now squirming around and ready to cry. "You smell," he told her. That did it. Izzy started screaming. "Laura!" he called again.

"I'm coming," she said, walking over. She immediately knew what he wanted. "You called me over here for diaper duty."

"I don't know how to change a diaper," was his excuse.

"Okay, I'll teach you," Laura told him. Robbie rolled his eyes. That was one thing he didn't really want to learn.

After Laura taught Robbie, against his will, how to change a diaper, Robbie began trying to entertain Izzy again. He was making funny faces and continued when he got a positive response. Izzy made little noises and smiled at Robbie when he was really funny. A few times, she didn't like his jokes too much though and began screaming.

"Robbie, stop it. Izzy's getting annoyed," Laura said, laughing a little. He was making Izzy cry. Laura picked Izzy up and talked to her. "It's okay. I know, Uncle Robbie is weird. Don't cry." Izzy calmed down a little as Laura rocked her. "Yeah, stop crying. Don't let Robbie bother you. Just ignore him. That's what I always do," Laura said, and looked over at Robbie. He faked being hurt, and Laura just smiled.

As Robbie and Laura continued playing with the baby, Laura realized how funny Robbie actually was. He made her laugh before, but seeing him trying to entertain a six-week-old made her laugh even more.

"I can't wait to have kids," Laura said, between laughing at Robbie and playing with Isabelle herself.

"Don't get any ideas," Robbie warned her, though he was joking. "I know girls sometimes get really crazy ideas."

"Don't worry. Even though I can't wait to have kids, I won't do anything stupid. I just meant that someday, when I am ready to have a baby, I want one."

"I really had no idea how much you wanted kids, Laur. Before the other night, I would have never guessed you even liked kids."

"Well, I always wanted them, because that's what I thought people did, ya know. But now, I really, really, _want_ one. Or a few," Laura said with a laugh.

"That's good. I could never marry someone that hated kids," Robbie said, immediately regretting the words. Trying to cover them up he added, "I mean, a lot of guys feel that way I think. And vice versa. In general, I don't think a person would marry someone that didn't share their views on having kids or not." As Robbie finished talking, he turned a bright shade of red.

"I know what you mean," Laura said, not wanting to make the situation any more awkward, though she was wondering what made him say his first words in the first place. Robbie didn't think Laura noticed him blushing, because Izzy then started crying.

"What's wrong now?" Robbie asked Laura. "I didn't so anything that time."

"Sometimes babies just cry, Robbie. I think she needs to be fed though. Why don't you warm the bottle while I put her pajamas on?"

Robbie warmed the bottle exactly as Laura told him. Now he had to check the temperature. He had no idea what was good though. After Laura explained what to do, and the bottle was warmed, Laura began feeding the baby.

"She must be hungry," Robbie commented. He noticed Izzy hungrily sucking on her bottle. "Can I feed her?"

"Sure," Laura said, handing him the baby and the bottle. After Izzy was done, and Robbie and Laura had passed her back and forth, Laura burped her and decided to attempt to put Izzy in the playpen.

Laura thought that Izzy would start crying for sure, but to her surprise, she didn't. Robbie handed her a little bunny rattle, and she was fine keeping herself entertained with that. He then walked up behind Laura and wrapped his arms around her waist. They watched Izzy for a couple minutes before Robbie began kissing Laura's neck. She turned around in his arms and stopped him.

"Robbie, we can't do this with the baby here."

"Why not? It's not like she knows what's going on," Robbie replied with a smirk.

"Still. We have to at least wait until she's asleep," Laura said with a smile.

Robbie knew he wasn't going to win so he sat on the bed and turned on the tv. Laura joined him, and minutes later Robbie noticed that Isabelle was fast asleep.

"She's asleep," Robbie said, hinting around.

"Guys. They only think about one thing," Laura said as she sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Come on, Laur. You promised."

"I did not!"

"You said that we couldn't do anything until the baby was asleep. Well, she's asleep . . . " Robbie said, leaving the sentence hang.

"Exactly. I said we couldn't do anything until she's asleep. That doesn't necessarily mean we will do something because she's asleep. We're supposed to be the responsible adults watching her. If Maddie and Jack came to pick her up and knew that we'd been more involved with entertaining each other than Izzy, they'd be pissed."

"I don't know about Maddie, but OC wouldn't be pissed. He'd probably find it funny," Robbie said, rolling over on top of Laura.

"Get off."

"Come on," he said with a grin. Laura shook her head and smiled.

"It won't kill you to wait for a little while."

"You don't know that for sure," Robbie teased her. He then began tickling her sides, making her giggle.

"Stop it," she said, laughing. He kept going. "Robbie, stop!" Laura practically shrieked. "If you make me wake scream and wake Izzy up, I'll . . . "

Robbie stopped tickling her. "You'll what? Punish me?" he asked raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah, but not like that. I'll make you wait so long it will kill you."

Robbie rolled off Laura and laid down. "Why do you make those threats?" he asked, half pouting. "I never know whether to believe them or not. Would you really actually hold out on me like that?"

Laura just laughed. "Don't try me and you won't have to find out."

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Three days later, the guys were ready to leave for New York. They were playing in Madison Square Gardens the following night against the Soviets and their nerves were growing. Robbie couldn't believe the Olympics were in a few days either. The last few months went by so fast. Laura stopped by that night to say goodbye to Robbie and wish him luck.

"Bye Robbie," Laura said, giving him a big hug, with Robbie returning a kiss.

"I'll miss you, baby. See you in a few days."

"Okay. Good luck tomorrow night. Call me and tell me how it goes."

"I will. I love you, Laura."

"Love you too," Laura said, then gave Robbie a kiss.

Silky walked up behind them. "Oh, how cute. It's like a little love fest." The comment was actually directed at not only Robbie and Laura, but Buzz and Gail as well.

"You're just jealous," commented Robbie, not bothering to listen if Silky had said anything back. He was too busy saying goodbye one last time to Laura. He gave her another kiss before finally boarding the bus.

"I'll see you Tuesday," said Robbie. "Love you."

Laura waved as the bus pulled away. She couldn't wait until Tuesday.

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Tuesday morning, Robbie was up bright and early. Laura's flight was getting in at eight thirty in the morning, and both Robbie and Buzz were meeting Laura and Gail in the hotel lobby before they had to be at the rink for their morning team skate.

"Hey girls!" Buzz said, seeing them and waving.

"Robbie!" Laura said, running over to greet him. After giving each other a hug and kiss, they pulled away.

"Gail, why don't I get a greeting like that?" Buzz asked his wife.

"I gave you a hug and kiss."

"But you didn't run over and jump in my arms like Laura."

"We're already married. I don't have to," Gail said, teasing him.

"Ugh." Buzz turned to Mac. "Mac, the wedding ruins everything. I never believed people that said once you're married, everything changes, but it's so true," Buzz joked. The joke earned him a little shove from Gail. "But of course, I love every minute of marriage," Buzz added, looking lovingly at Gail.

"That's why it ruins everything?" Gail asked, quoting him from earlier.

"Well, I meant . . . something else." Gail just laughed. "So how's Jack feeling by the way. I almost forgot."

"What's wrong with Jack?" Laura asked, not having a clue that he had gotten injured at the MSG game.

"Didn't Robbie tell you? He hurt his knee the other night," Buzz said.

"You told me the game just sucked, and nothing really happened. You failed to tell me Jack got injured!" Laura said, shocked, and hoping it wasn't too serious.

"Yeah, it was pretty bad," Buzz said. So much for Laura's thoughts that it wasn't serious.

"Will he be okay?" Laura asked.

"Will he be able to play?" Gail asked, before Laura got an answer.

"Not tonight. Hopefully by the medal round though," Robbie said.

"That really sucks. Especially after working so hard for so long. Getting injured now is awful," commented Gail. "I hope he gets better soon."

"Me too," said Laura.

"Us too," said Mac, speaking for himself and Buzz. "And I just hope no one else gets injured. We can't afford to lose anyone else."

"Yeah, I heard Herb talking to Craig last night, and they were saying that we may be in trouble playing certain teams missing a skater. It throws our lines off too," Buzz said.

A few minutes later, Buzz went upstairs with Gail to help her get settled in their room, and Robbie and Laura went to get a little breakfast.

"So, how was your flight?" he asked Laura.

"It was fine."

"Did you see anyone interesting?" Robbie asked, almost hinting at something.

"No. I slept most of it anyway."

"Oh, okay."

"Why? Was I supposed to see someone?"

"No, but my parent's flight came in this morning too. I didn't know if you were all on the same flight."

"No, thank God," Laura said, then wanted to take her words back. "I like your parents, Robbie, but your mom still scares me."

"Hopefully she doesn't scare you too much. You're sitting with them tonight."

"What do you mean?" Laura asked. Robbie hadn't told her that his parents got her tickets to the game that night. She still thought she'd be stuck in the hotel watching it on TV.

"My dad got an extra ticket to each of the games. I know you couldn't get tickets to a couple of them. Now you'll be able to see them all."

"Really?" Laura asked, excited. "That's great!" Laura went on for a few minutes about how great Robbie's father was. She was so happy she could go to all of the games. After listening to Laura for a few minutes, and finishing their breakfast, he had to go to the rink. In the meantime, Laura decided to go to the hotel room for a while before meeting up with Robbie and his parents again.

A little after two that afternoon, Laura went to the Olympic rink to find Robbie and his parents. Robbie had to stay at the rink until the game, which began at seven, but Laura was going out to dinner with the McClanahan's beforehand. Between dinner and the games, she had a feeling her night would be very awkward.


	29. Chapter 29

Bluehaven4220: Yeah, Robbie's clueless, lol. Thanks for the review and I hope you like this next chapter!

meadow567: Thanks :) Glad you liked it.

NellieBly413672: Yeah, more to come with Robbie's mom in this chapter. I think you'll like it. Thanks for the review, I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter!

xcapitalbarbie90: Thanks. It wasn't really that Robbie forgot to tell Laura exactly, he just didn't want to worry her. But anyway, yeah, dinner and the game with Robbie's mom. I'd be scared if I were Laura, lol. I hope you enjoy it.

everpresentpast: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked it. I think you'll be happy with the Laura and Beth part ;) Enjoy the chapter!

A/N: Thanks again for the reviews! I love reading what you all think. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter, and for those of you who want Beth to go easy on Laura and warm up to her... you might be in luck. This chapter is filled with drama though. Lots and lots of drama and tension and stress, and, well, you get the idea. Enjoy and please review!

Chapter 29

"Hey baby," Robbie said, seeing Laura walk into the arena. His parents were already there, as they had gotten there a few minutes before.

"Hi," she said. Robbie gave her a quick kiss. "Hi David and Beth. It's good to see you again," Laura said, pulling away from Robbie whose arm was still around her.

"It's good to see you too, Laura," said David.

After the four chatted for a few minutes, Robbie left to meet up with the team and Laura, Beth, and David left for dinner at a restaurant in the Olympic village.

"So Laura, I heard you're moving to Buffalo after the games," David said while they were waiting for their food.

"Yeah, Robbie asked me last week. I'm excited. It will definitely be different, because I've lived in Minnesota my whole life, but I'm excited. I'm most excited for Robbie though. He's ecstatic to have the chance to play in the NHL."

"Wait a minute," interjected Beth. "You're moving to Buffalo? To be with Robbie? He never told me about that," she said, surprise evident in her voice. She turned to her husband. "When did he tell you?"

"Just the other day."

"He didn't tell me," she said again. "Wow. So you're really moving to Buffalo for Robbie?" Beth asked, still surprised. David shot her a warning look, but Laura didn't really notice the tone of shock in Beth's voice to begin with.

"Well, yeah," Laura said. "I really love him," she said quietly, but loud enough that Beth heard her. Laura turned a light shade of red from admitting her feelings to his parents.

"Your family lives in Minnesota, don't they?" Beth asked, wondering to herself what Laura's real motivation for moving was.

"Yeah, but they understand why I'm moving. They actually want me to. My family met Robbie at Christmas and they absolutely loved him. I thought it was amazing at how well we all get along in general. My family and Robbie, and me and all of you. I was so scared that one of us would end up with in-laws that hate them."

The word "in-laws" sunk in quickly for Beth. Before she had a chance to ask about it though, Laura realized what she had said.

"Well, not that we're getting married," she said quickly. "Not that we won't," she added awkwardly. "We're not yet though. But, um . . . well . . . I just meant that, like . . . " Laura really didn't know how to tell them what she meant. She realized that Robbie's parents must think she was crazy. Laura blushed.

"Don't worry, we know what you mean, Laura," David said, noticing how tongue tied she got.

The rest of dinner went pretty well, and there were hardly any more awkward moments. Laura still felt a little weird being alone with Robbie's family, but she tried her hardest to be herself. David made her feel more comfortable than Beth, who Laura still wasn't sure about. She kept getting mixed signals and didn't know how to read them.

Before leaving the restaurant, Laura went to the bathroom and Robbie's parents were alone to talk about Laura.

"Beth, what happened to giving her a chance? You're lucky Laura didn't notice the look of surprise on your face when she said that she's moving, because you had 'I can't believe you might actually love him' written all over it."

"I am giving her a chance. I even talked to her about her interests all through dinner. And I thought I was very nice to her. But earlier, I was just surprised, that's all."

"Well, please try to be yourself and stop judging Laura."

A little while later, the three arrived at the arena. Laura relaxed quite a bit at the game because she noticed that Beth seemed more laid back and normal. She wasn't as uptight as usual.

Beth also noticed something about Laura. Once the game began, Beth saw that Laura knew much more about hockey than she would have ever guessed. Laura knew specific penalty calls and the rules of the game.

"Laura how do you know so much about hockey?" Beth asked, sort of giving Laura her first genuine compliment from her ever.

"Well, my dad and brother love hockey, so I've always watched it, but I actually picked most of the specific rules and really began understanding the details from watching Robbie play."

"Well, I have to say, I'm impressed," said Beth with a real smile.

Laura smiled back. "Thanks. I used to tell Robbie did amazing after every game, but sometimes he'd tell me that he really didn't. Now I can actually give him my honest opinion, because I know what he thinks is bad." Beth laughed a little.

"It's funny you say that, because to this day, I tell him good job after every game I watch, and sometimes he gets mad at me for saying it."

"Yeah, now I know when to watch out for him too. After a not so good game, I can usually tell whether to bring up the game or avoid the subject of hockey completely."

Beth was really impressed with Laura's knowledge of hockey. She figured that Laura was just another girl that found Robbie attractive mainly because he was a hockey player, and thought Laura wouldn't have a clue to the difference between a right wing and a defenseman. Beth now realized that she was totally wrong. Laura actually liked, or loved, Robbie for who he really was.

Within the first half of the first period, Sweden scored, and close to the end of the period, they were still ahead. Robbie was on the ice and fighting for the puck when Laura noticed Robbie back off a little. The Sweden player got the puck away and passed to someone else. Then Laura noticed the lines changing and Robbie half limping off the ice in apparent pain.

"Oh my God, is he okay?" she wondered out loud.

"It looks like his leg got hurt," said David.

"I hope he's all right," said Beth, turning to see a worried expression on Laura's face. For the remaining few minutes of the period, Laura didn't pay much attention to the game. She watched Robbie on the bench, wincing in pain as Doc looked at his injured leg. Laura knew guys got hit all the time, and minor injuries were a normal part of the sport, but she thought Robbie looked like he was in an incredible amount of pain. She just hoped it was nothing too serious.

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Doc helped Robbie into the locker room before the period ended. Robbie took his equipment off and was icing his leg as the rest of the team came into the locker room. No one was happy about being down by a goal, but no one was as upset as Herb.

He came into the locker room clearly pissed off. Robbie was too busy thinking about his leg and hoping it would be better for the next game to really notice how upset Herb was at first. Ever Herb throwing a table across the room really didn't get Robbie's full attention. His leg hurt too much to care.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" Herb asked. Robbie looked up, realizing that Herb was talking to him. After Herb told him to put his gear on though, Robbie wasn't sure anymore and didn't react. Herb told him again, and Robbie responded, telling him that Doc said he couldn't play. Herb then acted as if Robbie was a baby for not playing and called him a quitter.

Robbie was pissed but decided to let it go and get dressed like Herb wanted. It was Herb's next comment that really burnt Robbie up though. No one was going to call him what he thought just came from Herb's mouth. Robbie threw down the ice and stood up, moving toward Herb. The two began yelling at one another, with Robbie ten times more heated than Herb was.

"You want me to play, huh? Is that what you want?" Robbie yelled.

"I WANT YOU TO BE A HOCKEY PLAYER!" Herb yelled back.

"I AM A HOCKEY PLAYER!" Robbie yelled, his face turning bright red from the stress of screaming.

Herb calmly walked out of the room as Robbie tried to go after him. Johnson and Rammer held Robbie back, with Robbie yelling at them to get off of him. Robbie didn't know exactly what he would do to Herb if he got to him, but that didn't really concern him at the time.

"Get off me!" Robbie yelled at his friends again. "Does that make you happy? Huh, Herb? I am a hockey player!" Robbie yelled some more, even more angry that Herb was just walking away from him.

"Easy. Easy, Mac," someone said. Robbie didn't know who said it and didn't care either. He continued fighting the guys off of him.

"Come on, Mac. It's over. Stop," said Mark. After a minute more of yelling, Robbie stopped, realizing Herb was gone and probably couldn't even hear him anymore.

"It's not worth it," said Rammer. "He's just being Herb."

"Yeah, Mac. Don't let it bother you too much. Herb always says stuff like this," said Rizzo.

"Oh yeah," Robbie yelled. "I've heard him say plenty to you, but I don't recall him ever calling you a candy-ass. I don't deserve it!" he yelled loud, still hoping Herb would hear him. "I'm not a quitter and I am a hockey player!" he yelled, his face bright red from anger.

"I'm sure he didn't really mean it," commented Verchota. "Herb's being a jerk. It's not like that anything new."

"He's being a fucking ass hole!" yelled Robbie.

"He's just trying to mess with you and get you angry," said Jimmy, quietly.

"Well he did a damn good job. I'm pissed," Robbie said, picking up his equipment and putting it on forcefully. "No way I'm letting anyone call me a fucking quitter," Robbie mumbled. He continued mumbling to himself as he got ready to play. His leg killed, but it wasn't stopping him. As soon as he was ready, Robbie left the locker room and sat in the hall. He wanted to be away from everyone just then.

For the remaining time between periods, the guys sat in the locker room, still shocked at the scene that had just unfolded minutes before. Once the second period was a couple minutes away from starting, Rizzo decided to make a quick captain speech before the guys left the locker room.

"Come on guys, let's do this. I know we're all pissed at Herb right now. We have every reason to be. What he said to Mac was uncalled for. But let's go out there and do this for Mac. Even though his leg hurts like hell, he's gonna go out there and give us everything he can. Let's see what we can do for him. We have to play together and behind him. Mac took one for the team, and now we gotta do something for him. Let's show him how proud we are that he's sticking this out."

This motivated the guys to get back on the ice and play hard, including Robbie, who could hear Rizzo's powerful words in the hall. He was still angry, but ready to show Herb that he had what it took. No one was going to call him a quitter.

Laura was very surprised to see Robbie out on the ice in the beginning of the second period. He looked really angry just before the face off, but it still looked like he was in a lot of pain.

"I wonder why he's still playing?" Laura wondered out loud.

"I don't know. I thought for sure he would be done for the night," Beth responded.

Laura watched Robbie play a little in the second and third period. With almost three minutes left in the game, Robbie was on the ice for a face off. He still looked more angry than Laura had ever seen him. He wasn't even as angry when they had a fight about something. It was almost scary seeing Robbie that angry. He had a look that could kill on his face. Laura also noticed him pushing the Sweden guy next to him before the face off. She just hoped he didn't get in a fight. The team really couldn't afford a penalty now, because they needed to score.

Just after the face off, Robbie was checked hard into the boards. He was down for a little longer than normal, causing Laura's heart to skip a beat, but he was then up, although still in pain.

Robbie skated with some difficulty down the ice, his thoughts on what Herb had said earlier was the only thing keeping him going. That and the cheers of support he heard from his team. He had a sudden burst of strength as he hit a Sweden team member hard in the boards.

"All right, Mac!" Robbie heard Rizzo yell.

With a little over a minute left, Robbie was relieved from the ice. With words of support from his teammates, Robbie sat on the bench to watch the remainder of the game. He knew he wouldn't be back out again, thankfully.

Only seconds were left when Baker scored and tied the game at two, ending the first game of the Olympics in a tie.

After the game, Laura wasn't sure whether to go down to the locker room or not. She was really worried about Robbie, but with him looking so angry, she wasn't sure wether she wanted to see him right away or not. Laura decided on waiting with Robbie's parents near the doors where Robbie would come out. It didn't take him long after the game.

Though Robbie was still angry, and in quite a bit of pain, he smiled when he saw Laura waiting for him. He knew that she probably saw how angry he was on the ice and smiled as a way to reassure her that he wasn't angry with her and wouldn't take his problem out on her.

Laura understood the simple gesture, realizing the smile was sort of forced, but also knowing that he was indeed happy to see her.

"Hey," she said walking up to him. "Is your leg okay?"

"It hurts like hell," he answered honestly. Robbie didn't mention why he was so upset on the ice, but Laura got the impression that he didn't feel like discussing. Robbie did explain exactly how he got injured though. He got a bad charley horse from getting hit in the leg with someone's knee. Robbie assured his parents that he would be okay and after thanking them for coming to the game, they left. Laura went back to Robbie's room with him. Robbie was rooming with Buzz for the Olympics, so he was alone because Buzz went to his wife's room for the night.

"Can I get you anything?" she asked. "Ice? Ibuprofen?" Robbie shook his head and sat on the bed, carefully bringing up his leg on the bed. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm just really tired tonight. I think I need a good night's sleep."

"You played great for being hurt, Robbie," Laura said sincerely, rubbing his arm affectionately. Robbie didn't respond. "Do you want to talk about it?" Laura asked, sensing there was something else that was wrong. Robbie was trying to hide it, but Laura knew whatever was bothering him was more than a simple charley horse. He was clearly pissed off at something, or someone.

"There's nothing to talk about," Robbie said. "I've had a long day and I want to go to sleep."

Laura didn't want to push him, but she wanted to help. "Okay, if you want to talk though, I'm here. I'll just listen."

"Thanks, but I don't feel like talking," he said cooly. Immediately he regretted it. He wasn't trying to start a fight with Laura, but it was hard keeping his cool. He wanted to talk to her because he knew she would listen and understand, but he couldn't admit what Herb had called him. It was bad enough that his friends heard Herb's harsh words, but to have his girlfriend hear that Herb called him a quitter, baby, candy ass, and other things would have been even worse.

"Okay," said Laura, knowing he didn't want to talk. She decided to let it go and not say anything more about it. He obviously had a rough day. "Do you want me to stay? I can leave if you want."

"Stay," Robbie said. Laura could Robbie needed her even if he didn't want to talk just then.

"I love you. Good night," Laura said, kissing Robbie on the lips. He returned the kiss and they both fell fast asleep.

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The next morning, Laura woke up long before Robbie. He was still sleeping when there was a knock on his door. It was Rizzo.

"Is Mac up?"

"Not yet."

"Okay, I was just wondering how he was doing. How was he when you two got back last night?"

"All right I guess. His leg was really bothering him, but he tried to hide it."

"Is he still pissed at Herb? Or has it washed over a bit?"

"So it's Herb that he's royally pissed at," Laura said, glad to finally know.

"You didn't hear about it?" Laura shook her head and Rizzo motioned for her to come into the hall so they could talk. "After Robbie got hurt, Herb said a lot that he shouldn't have," Rizzo began. He went on to explain the locker room fiasco and Laura was in disbelief. She couldn't believe Herb either.

"Thanks for telling me, Rizzo. I don't think Robbie would have told me."

"He's probably too embarrassed," deduced Rizzo.

Laura went back in the room and a little while later woke Robbie up because practice started in an hour.

"How's your leg feel today?" Laura asked.

"It hurts," said Robbie, sitting up in bed. Laura sat next to him and put her arm around him.

"Other than the leg how are you?" she asked.

"Fine," he responded. Laura could see that he wasn't fine though.

"You looked really angry on the ice last night," she commented. Laura hoped Robbie would explain everything to her so she didn't have to tell him that Rizzo told her.

"Yeah."

"I was surprised to see you still playing, actually."

"I had to tough it out. That's what hockey players do. I can take it. I'm not a quitter," Robbie said bitterly, thinking about Herb's words the night before.

"I know you're not. But it looked like you were in a lot of pain. I don't think anyone in your shoes would have continued playing."

"Like I said, Laur, I'm tough. I can handle it."

"No one has to be that tough though, Robbie. I wouldn't have blamed you for not playing." Robbie began getting annoyed.

"Well, I had the whole team to think about, didn't I? I couldn't go quitting on them. I had to prove that I could take it."

"You never have to prove anything to me," Laura said quietly, rubbing his back. "And you're no quitter. You are a hockey player, and a good one at that, no matter what anyone says. Okay? Don't forget that."

Robbie looked at her, his expression turning hard. "Who told you?"

"Told me what?"

"Told you about what happened last night."

"No one."

"I know you know. Who told you?" he asked, glaring at her.

"Rizzo," she finally admitted. Robbie pushed Laura's hand away, got up and hit phone, knocking it off the bedside table. He went into the bathroom and slammed the door. Laura was left sitting on the bed, wondering exactly what had just happened.

Ten minutes later, Robbie came out to see Laura watching TV, like nothing was wrong. For the past ten minutes, he just sat in the bathroom, not doing anything but thinking. Robbie wanted to cool down before seeing Laura. The last thing he wanted was to do or say something that he would later regret. It wasn't fair that he was taking this out on Laura, and he knew it. He sat next to her without Laura acknowledging his presence.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean it. I know you were only trying to help," Robbie said.

"It's okay. I know you had a rough day yesterday, and it's completely understandable. I don't blame you for not wanting to talk either."

"I would have told you eventually, but I just felt like maybe I was a baby and I didn't want you to think that I was or anything. I needed to prove that I was tough and could handle it."

"I know," said Laura.

"And I didn't mean to get mad at you and knock the phone off the table and stuff. I'm still pissed at Herb. It's not anyone on the team or you that I'm mad at."

"I know it's hard. You have to take it out on someone, and it can't be on Herb, so why not me or the team."

Robbie sighed. "Thanks for understanding."

"No problem. I'm here for you no matter what." Robbie gave Laura a kiss and then got ready for practice, all while venting to Laura some more. It just took her listening to him and making a suggestion every now and then to reassure him and give him confidence. Robbie couldn't completely put what Herb said behind him, but it was a lot easier to keep it in the back of his mind now though.


	30. Chapter 30

meadow567: Thanks. I wanted to kind of show the aftermath because that part's not in the movie. I'm glad you liked it.

NellieBly413672: Thanks. I love adding parts to scenes that weren't in the movie, becuse then it's not like reading exactly what happened in the movie. I'm glad you liked it and thanks again for the review!

xcapitalbarbie90: Yeah, Mrs. McClanahan is getting along with Laura now. I figured it was about time, lol. Enjoy the chapter.

Bluehaven 4220: I'm glad you liked it. It seems everyone liked that scene, which is good. I hope you like the next chapter too.

everpresentpast: Thanks for the review. And poor Robbie is right. That was definitely rough for him, and I wish I could give him a hug as well. Thanks again for the review and enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 30

Two days after the Sweden game was Valentine's Day. The guys had practiced that morning and in the afternoon Robbie went back to his hotel room to get ready for dinner with Laura. He wanted to make it an amazing Valentine's Day, so to make it even more memorable, Robbie was making dinner. Unfortunately, his room wasn't a suite, so there was no kitchen, but it wasn't too big a problem. After leaving a note for Laura on where to meet him, Robbie left with everything he needed for the night.

Laura had been walking around the Olympic village all morning, just seeing the sites. Robbie had told her that he would be back from practice around two, but that she should get ready for their Valentine's date and meet him at his room at five. At five o'clock, Laura got to Robbie's room and went inside using his other key, because no one answered the door.

"Robbie?" she called. Walking inside, Laura noticed it was completely dead, like no one was there. Then she saw a note on the table. It said: _Hey beautiful. Meet me in room 505. I love you, baby. Love, Robbie._

Laura couldn't imagine why he was upstairs in a different room, but she did what the note said anyway. Taking the elevator up two floors, she then found room 505 and knocked on the door. Robbie opened it in seconds with a huge smile.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" Robbie said, greeting Laura with a kiss.

"Thanks, you too. So why are we up here?" Laura asked.

"Come on in and you'll find out." Laura took his hand and followed him inside. Se thought she could smell spaghetti but wasn't too sure.

"Is that spaghetti?"

"Actually it's veal parmigiana."

Laura raised her eyebrows. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," Robbie nodded.

"No way." Laura was still shocked. She didn't even know Robbie cooked, let alone a specialty like veal.

"Rizzo gave me some pointers, but I made it myself."

"I'm impressed."

"Hopefully you'll be just as impressed when you try it." Robbie led Laura over to a table with place settings, candles, and the dinner in the middle.

"It looks wonderful," Laura commented. Robbie pulled out Laura's chair and she sat down. "So, we're up here just because you wanted to make me dinner?" Laura asked as Robbie served her.

"Yeah. I wanted to make dinner, and since the suite had a kitchen, I just got the room for the night."

"We're spending the night here?"

"Yeah. You should check out the bedroom after dinner. We even have a hot tub."

"Oh my God! That's amazing," Laura said, her eyes lighting up at the thought of a hot tub. "You should have told me to bring a bathing suit."

"Now why in the world would you need a bathing suit?" Robbie asked suggestively. Laura giggled.

"Mmm, dinner's amazing," Laura said after taking a bite.

"Glad you like it."

"I'm really pleasantly surprised with your cooking abilities, but I can't believe you've been holding out on me all this time," Laura said. Robbie laughed. "Now I'm gonna have you make me dinner more often."

After dinner, Laura went into the bedroom and saw rose petals on the bed. "Oh my God, this just keeps getting better and better!" She kissed Robbie after he came in the room. "You're the most amazing boyfriend ever."

"Well, I have a little something more for you too," he said, pulling out a rectangle velvet box. Laura opened it and gasped. Inside was a beautiful white gold diamond double heart necklace. One heart was bigger than the other and they were linked, the bigger heart had the diamond stones on it. It was beautiful. Laura's eyes began tearing up.

"I love this Robbie. I love you. This necklace is beautiful," she said, wiping her eyes. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Want help putting it on?"

"Sure, thanks." Laura turned around and moved her hair to the side so Robbie could put the necklace on. He kissed the back of her neck and she turned back around.

"It looks even better on you than in the box," Robbie said. Laura smiled.

"You know, my present for you is going to look like crap compared to all of this."

"Well, I'm a firm believer that Valentine's Day is more for the girl anyway. But since we're discussing . . . where is my present?"

"Stay here, I'll be right back," Laura said, disappearing into the bathroom and shutting the door. A few minutes later, Laura came back out wearing lacy red Valentine's Day lingerie with fuzzy black trim. Robbie wasn't paying attention to Laura when she came out of the bathroom, so to get his attention, Laura took a somewhat seductive pose, standing against the doorframe, and cleared her throat.

Robbie looked up and immediately his eyes went wide. It wasn't that he'd never seen Laura in a lot less than what she was wearing, but having her standing in front of him was almost overwhelming.

"Jack told me you wanted to get me an outfit like this for Christmas, but apparently he talked you out of it. I decided that it was a better idea for it to come from me anyway, because it's more of a gift for you seeing as it's for your appreciation."

Robbie was speechless and just swallowed, almost thinking he was dreaming.

"So, how do I look?"

"Umm . . . amazing?" he said, making it sound more like a question. "I mean, for lack of a better word."

Laura smiled. "I take it you like it?"

"I love it," he said, getting off the bed and walking over to her. He took her hands in his and looked up and down at Laura again. "You look hot! Like, really, really hot," he said, still in disbelief.

"Thanks," Laura responded, laughing. "I think that's what I was going for."

Robbie couldn't pull his eyes away from Laura. His eyes were no longer on her body though, but on her eyes with the way her smile lit up her whole face.

"So . . . what should we do now?" Laura asked, suggestively.

"I don't know. You totally threw me off. I expected my present to be like . . . well, I don't know. But I definitely didn't expect this. Now I can't think clearly at all. I mean, I had absolutely no clue that my present would be a hot little number," he said, motioning toward Laura's outfit.

Laura laughed again and this time, Robbie was watching her and couldn't resist his urge to grab her and start kissing her. She stopped laughing as he pulled her in close and returned his hungry, passionate kiss.

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Over next few days, the guys played well, beating every team they faced. Finally, the advancements to the medal round were announced, and the team found out they were going to be playing the Soviets first.

On the morning of the big game, Mac slept in a little before he needed to be at the rink. He went downstairs with Laura for scrambled eggs and sausage before leaving. After Laura wished a very nervous Robbie luck, he headed over to the arena for the team's morning skate. OC was lacing up his skates when he walked in the locker room.

"You playing?" Robbie asked.

"Hopefully. Doc said I'm okay, but it's ultimately up to Herb."

"That's great. We could definitely use you, especially tonight. We need someone to rough up all the Soviets and put them in their place," Robbie said. "Plus, we could really use you so the lines are back to normal."

"Thanks. I think I'll take that as a compliment," OC responded. Robbie didn't respond but instead went to get ready.

Late that afternoon, the guys were ready to play. The locker room was tense and very quiet. All of the guys were concentrating on the game they were about to play. After a pep speech from Herb, the guys headed out to the ice. Robbie took his position at left wing before the puck was dropped and looked into the stands to see Laura and his parents. Laura blew him a kiss and smiled, and Robbie just smiled back before focusing on Valeri Kharlamov, the Soviet player standing across from him.

Close to the end of the first period, the U.S. team was only down by one. Laura was so excited that they were still in it, especially after the game a week and a half ago that she heard all about. Laura decided to go to the bathroom as soon as the period ended, so she would avoid the rush. She didn't want to miss any of the second period in case something exciting happened right away. Just as Laura turned her head, and was getting ready to stand up, she heard a buzz and cheering.

The buzz wasn't surprising because she thought it was the horn ending the period, and since there was cheering throughout the entire game so far, that wasn't surprising either. The cheering was louder though, and Laura looked to the ice. The Soviet goalie was looking in disbelief at the puck behind him in the net. The U.S. scored and that the sound was the goal buzzer, not the horn ending the period! Laura couldn't believe she missed the goal. The referee said the goal stood because there was one second left when Mark Johnson scored. Everyone was wild with excitement. This was unbelievable. A last second goal meant they were tied with the Soviets.

By the end of the second period, the U.S. was down, but only by one. Going into the third though, their deficit didn't last long because Mark scored again. Again, they were tie. Laura thought the crowd, including herself, was getting more excited and into the game as the seconds went by.

With ten minutes left, Rizzo scored. Laura was so happy for him, mainly because of how hard of a time Robbie said Rizzo was having at one point. Rizzo skated around the boards, dancing a little as his teammates crowded around him. Now they only had ten minutes left. If they could hold them for ten minutes, the game was theirs. Laura began getting extremely excited, but also very nervous. She knew that anything could happen and ten minutes was a long time to play.

For the remainder of the game, Laura couldn't sit still. She could barely watch. Everytime the Soviets had the puck in the U.S. zone, she was literally on the edge of her seat.

"Just don't fall off," David teased her. Laura had no idea how he could have been making jokes just then. She was so nervous for the guys that she didn't know what to do with herself. Laura noticed the guys on the bench looking at the clock every few seconds, as if watching it would make it go faster. She was guilty of doing that too though, which really only seemed to make time stand still.

Only thirty seconds were left and the pressure was building. Laura glanced from the clock to the ice and back for the remaining time. At ten seconds left her ears were ringing from the cheering and the countdown began. As she was counting down the seconds and watching Robbie and the rest of the guys that were on the ice, just trying to keep the puck out of their zone, she heard the announcer say "Five seconds left in the game . . . Do you believe in miracles? YES!"

The team rushed onto the ice and the buzzer sounded. They won! The guys crowded around each other, cheered, hugged, screamed, and a few even cried from happiness.

"Oh my God! Do you believe this?" Robbie yelled as he hugged Buzz. He skated over to Rizzo next. "We won!" he said, throwing his arms around him.

"This is amazing!" Rizzo yelled back.

"Congratulations guys!" Maddie yelled to them over the loud crowd cheering.

"We won!" Robbie yelled, picking her up and spinning her around. He was so happy. For the next several minutes, and after the guys shook hands with the Soviet team, they continued celebrating and the crowd continued to cheer too.

While the guys were celebrating on the ice, Laura was in the stands celebrating as well. Screaming and cheering, she then turned to both of Robbie's parents and hugged them. "We won! We won!" she shouted.

"Isn't it amazing?" Beth said excitedly.

Laura nodded. "I'm gonna go down to the locker room," she told his parents. "I need to congratulate Robbie and the rest of the guys."

Laura ran into Gail on her way downstairs and they immediately ran over and hugged Maddie, who was waiting outside the locker room.

"We won!" she yelled, as if she had to say it over and over again to make sure it wasn't a dream. "This is so exciting!"

"Are the guys still on cloud nine?" Gail asked.

Just as Maddie responded that the guys couldn't stop screaming, shouts of joy were heard from the locker room.

"This is amazing!" said Laura. "I still can barely believe it. We actually won!" After a pause she added, "Wow. I'll never get tired of saying that."

A few minutes after the girls got downstairs, Bah opened the locker room door. "Hey girls. Come on in here. You deserve to be celebrating with us," he said. He added, "Don't worry, we're all decent."

As soon as Laura went into the locker room, she ran over to Robbie and threw her arms around him. He lifted her off the ground in a hug, and then set her down and kissed her.

"We won!" he said.

At the same time she said, "Congratulations!" He hugged her again. "Okay, okay. Stop! You're all sweaty and it's gross," Laura said, though she was only teasing. She knew he was just really excited.

Robbie let her go. "Sorry," he said, still smiling. Laura knew that nothing at that moment could take the guys smiles away. "Wasn't that amazing?"

"It was," Laura agreed. After hugging most of the guys and congratulating them, everyone began leaving the locker room to see their families. Everyone had come downstairs to congratulate them and there was total chaos outside the locker room.

Before the team left to celebrate, Herb made sure he reminded everyone that it wasn't over yet and they had to be at the rink for practice the next morning.

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Two days later, the guys went on to win the gold and the Olympics were over. They were proud of themselves for such a great accomplishment, as was everyone else. Laura watched as Robbie had the gold medal placed around his neck, and remembered back to seven months ago. Back then, she never imagined things going so well with Robbie for as long as they had. She never even imagined still being with Robbie. Laura was so happy that she was a part of his life though, because getting the Olympic gold medal was probably the biggest honor he would ever have and she was so happy to be able to see it.

After the medal ceremony, Laura headed outside to meet Robbie and the rest of the team.

"Guess what?!" Robbie said the minute he saw her.

"You're holding a gold medal?!" Laura said back, in just as excited a tone. She knew that her response wasn't actually what Robbie was looking for.

"Well, yeah. But guess what else?"

"I have no idea. What?"

"I'm going to the White House!"

"When?" Laura asked, surprised. Why would Robbie be going there?

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Laura asked, now even more surprised.

"The whole team's going, not just Robbie," Maddie explained.

"Really?"

"Yeah. President Carter invited us because we're so amazing for winning the gold," he said in a purposely cocky tone.

"That's awesome!"

"Yeah, it's like were national heros."

"Hey!" Verchota interjected, who had been listening. "Maybe they'll make a movie or someone will write a book about us. You know, like Romeo and Juliet."

"Romeo and Juliet wasn't a true story, you idiot," Maddie told him.

"It wasn't?"

"No."

"Are you sure? I really thought it was."

"It wasn't," Maddie and Laura said at the same time.

"The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a true story. Maybe it will be like that," Robbie suggested.

"That was barely based on a true story," Maddie said.

"And that's about a psycho killer. You guys won a gold medal. That's nothing like murdering someone," Laura pointed out.

"Well, if people are really saying were national heros, then I bet someone will make a documentary on us," Robbie said. "Bands and other famous events have documentaries made all the time."

"Like the Rolling Stones!" Verchota said excitedly.

"I guess anything can happen," was all Laura said in reply.

By two in the morning, almost everyone had enough celebrating. They were all exhausted. At the same time, no one really wanted the night to end because the next morning they were flying to Washington, D.C. and then going their separate ways.

Laura, Maddie, and Gail had to say their goodbye's that night. Laura and Gail were flying back to Minnesota, but they were on different flights, and Maddie was going with the team.

"I'm gonna miss you girls so much!" Maddie said, hugging both Laura and Gail.

"I'll miss you too," Gail said. "But I'm definitely coming back for the wedding."

"Good," Maddie said. All three girls were crying by this time, with Robbie, OC, and Buzz trying to calm them down.

"Thank you so much for being such great friends," Laura told them.

"I'll miss you, Laur," Maddie said, wiping her face.

"Hey, girls, you'll see each other again soon," Robbie said.

"I know," Laura responded. That didn't mean she was going to miss Maddie any less though. And she would definitely miss Isabelle.

"We have to see each other soon. Izzy needs to see her aunt now and then," Maddie said. Laura smiled.

"Yeah, I can't spoil her as easily if I never see her."

The three girls and the guys eventually left the bar and said good-bye one last time. Luckily Laura didn't need to say good-bye to Robbie until the next morning. She had all night to say good-bye to him.

Even though Laura and Robbie had all night together, it wasn't long enough. Since Europe, they hadn't needed to be apart for more than a few days or so. Right after Washington, Robbie was going to Buffalo. Laura wasn't joining him for a few weeks because of the way her schedule worked out with needing to move everything.

"I'm gonna miss you," Robbie said that morning, as he walked Laura down to the taxi that was taking her to the airport.

"I'm gonna miss you more," Laura said. "Have fun in DC, and good luck in Buffalo. I'll be watching you on TV," Laura said and then smiled. "That sounds weird."

"I know, doesn't it? I can't believe tomorrow I'll be officially in the NHL," Robbie replied. "Have a safe flight and I'll see you in a few weeks."

"I love you."

"I love you too," Robbie replied, just as the taxi pulled up. "Are you sure you can't just leave your stuff in Minnesota and come with me now?"

"I wish I could, but then I wouldn't have anything. And since I plan on staying in Buffalo quite a long time, I'm gonna need more than just the clothes in my suitcase now."

"I guess you're right," Robbie said and sighed. "Oh well, I tried."

"Bye," Laura said, and pulled him into a kiss. "And congratulations again."

"Thanks, I love you, baby. See you soon," Robbie said, kissing Laura one more time before she left. Robbie couldn't wait until March 19th. Right now it seemed way too far away.

A/N: I hope everyone liked the chapter. I know there was a lot in the chapter, but I wanted to get up to this point in my story before I left for Florida on vacation. Now it's at a good stopping point so there's no cliffhanger. I want to make it clear that there will be more to the story though. I still plan on having about six chapters or so of Robbie and Laura in Buffalo, but they won't be posted until I get back which is a little less than two weeks from now.


	31. Chapter 31

justlikewedo: Me too!! I love Mac. Thanks for the reivew!

meadow567: Yeah, Florida was nice. Now I have a few days before I start school, ugh. Thanks for the review and enjoy the chapter.

NellieBly413672: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. Mac is an awesome boyfriend. Too bad guys weren't like him in real life, lol. Enjoy the chapter.

Bluehaven4220: Thanks, and here's another chapter. Enjoy!

xcapitalbarbie90: Glad you liked it. Thanks for the review and I hope you like the rest!

A/N: Well, I'm back. I had a awesome time in Florida. It was sooo hot, but it was tons of fun. It didn't rain at all, which was good. Now I'm all tan before school starts. Yay! Speaking of which, after I start school, I won't have as much time to update, so it'll probably be like once a week or so. The chapters might also be a little shorter. And I'm sorry that this chapter is kinda short, but I'm hoping to have the next one up Sunday night. Enjoy!

Chapter 31

On March 8, the day before Robbie's NHL debut, he went to his apartment after practice and called Laura. Surprisingly, she wasn't answer. Laura had told him to call after practice, but Robbie figured she must have gone out somewhere. He decided to try again in a little while, but in the meantime, he fell asleep. Practice had been exhausting that day.

Robbie was having a really good dream, not surprisingly about Laura, because he'd been having a lot of them recently, when he was awakened by a banging sound. At first, he didn't realize what it was, but when it continued, Robbie realized someone was at the door.

"Hold on a second. I'm coming," Robbie said. He was still half asleep and tripped over the table. "Shit," he swore under his breath. Robbie finally got to the door. He didn't even bother looking through the peephole but instead just opened the door.

He was shocked to see Laura standing there. "Oh my God, Laura!" he said excitedly.

"Hey baby," she said. After a few seconds she said, "Are you just going to stand there with your mouth hanging open or are you going to give me a welcome hug and kiss?" Laura reached her arms out toward her boyfriend. He pulled her into a tight embrace and kissed her.

"I'm so happy to see you!" he said. "And surprised. What are you doing here?"

"I missed you."

"But you're not supposed to be here for another two and a half weeks."

"Well, I got everything together sooner than expected."

"So you're not just visiting? You're here to stay now?"

"Yep."

"Where's all your stuff?" Robbie asked, noticing only two suitcases, one on either side of Laura.

"This is only some of it to last me two weeks. Your parents are doing me a favor and bringing the rest when the come to see you play at the end of March."

"I'm so happy you're here," Robbie said, smiling.

"Me too," Laura said, kissing him again. After a few seconds, Laura pulled away. "How about you help me bring my stuff inside, then you can show me around? After that I'm sure we can find something to do," she said suggestively. "How many rooms do you have?" she asked, and Robbie knew what she was hinting at.

He laughed. "I don't know if I have enough energy for that. If you count the kitchen and the bathroom, I have five rooms."

"That's included the hallway too, right?" Laura asked, joking. "I'm kidding. I don't even have the energy for that. And I know you were sleeping when I got here. At first, I almost thought you weren't home because it took so long to answer."

"I was having a good dream."

"What was it about?"

"You."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Robbie replied.

"What happened in the dream?" Laura asked.

"Well, it was interrupted," Robbie exasperated, trying to make Laura feel guilty. "So I don't really know."

Laura laughed, knowing he was joking and playfully hit him.

After Robbie gave her a tour and dragged her suitcases into his bedroom, they went back into the living room. Laura followed him, holding a package in her hand. It was the shape of a clothes' box and wrapped.

"This is a little something for you to congratulate you on your NHL debut," Laura explained, handing him the box.

Robbie started pulling the wrapping paper off, took off the lid, and held up a pair of blue boxers with yellow writing. Sabres colors. He immediately began laughing. They said "Wanna see my Buffalo Sabre?" on the front.

"What is it with you and sexually suggestive boxers?" Robbie asked, still laughing. This is the second time he'd gotten suggestive hockey themed boxers from Laura.

"I picked them up on the way over here. I didn't really expect to find something like that though."

"Well, I love them. They're perfect. I won't be wearing these in the locker room though."

"Can't say I blame you."

"I'm so glad you're here," Robbie said, smiling.

"Now I'll actually be at your first NHL game. And I'll get to meet your teammates and stuff."

"Yeah, and you'll be sitting with everyone's wives and girlfriends at the game. They have a special box for the player's families."

"Cool."

Robbie and Laura spent the rest of the night in the apartment, catching up and enjoying each other's company.

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The next night, Laura met all of Robbie's teammates after the game. There were way too many names to remember, and along with some of the player's wives and kids, she didn't think remembering everyone would ever be possible. Laura had a lot of fun though. Because Robbie and Rammer were both new to the team and to Buffalo, the team decided to go to the Anchor Bar for chicken wings after the game.

"You haven't had real chicken wings unless you've eaten them in Buffalo," one of the guys, Rick, said.

"And the Anchor Bar just happens to be the founder of the chicken wing," another guy chimed in.

"Tomorrow you should take Laura around the city since we have a day off," someone else suggested.

"When I got to the airport, I picked up a bunch of brochures about different sites in Buffalo. I have a whole list of things I want to do," Laura said.

"Wonderful," Robbie said, sarcastically. "Rammer, I'm recruiting you to come with us."

"No thanks. I have a busy day tomorrow."

"What are you doing?" Robbie asked.

"Oh, I have lots to do. Lots and lots to keep me really busy," Rammer said vaguely.

"Yeah, lots of sitting on your ass watching tv," one of their teammates said.

"But technically that's still being busy," Rammer pointed out.

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The next morning, Laura woke Robbie up bright and early. She wanted to get an early start that day.

"Come on Robbie. We have a full day planned. I want to check out the city."

"All right," Robbie groaned. He was still exhausted from the previous night.

Laura and Robbie got all ready for their day and left the apartment.

"So, where are we off to first?" Robbie asked after they were in the car. Laura was driving because she knew where they were going.

"The Broadway Market. That's where we're having breakfast. Apparently they have a bunch of vendors and some have really good baked goods."

"What else is on the agenda today?"

"Well, unfortunately since its March, a lot of the stuff I wanted to do will have to wait until it gets warmer. But, the Mainplace Mall is supposed to be a good place to shop so we're going to go there. After that, we'll get lunch. I don't know where yet. I guess whatever we find. Someone told me that Anderson's is the best place for roast beef and custard. And if it's snowing, the ice cream's half price," Laura added happily. "Then we're going to Rotary Rink in Fountain Plaza because they have ice skating there."

Robbie cut Laura off. "Are you sure we're going to have time for everything?"

"Of course. If not, there's always another day. After skating we're going to do a little more shopping on Elmwood, because I heard there are a lot of little shops there."

Robbie laughed to himself. It sounded like Laura knew exactly where she was going and knew everything there was to know about the city.

Even though it was quite a long day, Robbie had fun. It was mainly because Laura was there, and he finally got to spend time with her again. They were laying in bed, and Robbie was just about to fall asleep when Laura began talking again.

"I had tons of fun seeing the city today."

"Me too," Robbie said.

"I can't wait to do some more Buffalo things."

"Yeah," Robbie said with his eyes closed, hoping that Laura would take the hint and let him sleep.

"What other things can we do in the winter around here?"

"I don't know."

"We're going to have to spend a day doing things around the city once it's nice out too. There is tons more that I want to do, but unfortunately we can't in the winter."

"Mmhmm," Robbie responded sleepily, ready to agree to anything just to go to sleep.

"Okay, I'll let you sleep now," Laura said, giving him a kiss before she too began drifting off to sleep.


	32. Chapter 32

Bluehaven4220: Thanks for the reivew! And I would love to have someone surprise me early like that. Glad you liked it and Enjoy this chapter too.

NellieBly413672: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it. Enjoy the next chapter too!

meadow567: Rain sucks. I hope you didn't get too much water damage and stuff though. That would suck even more. Anyway, thanks for the review and I hope you like the chapter.

justlikewedo: Thanks! And I tried not to keep you waiting too long for another update. Enjoy the chapter!

A/N: Thanks again for the reviews! This chapter's a lot longer than the last one. Sorry I couldn't get it up earlier. I wasn't home at all on Sunday and yesterday I started school. Luckily I didn't have any classes today, because my lans don't start until next week. Yay! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it!

Chapter 32

The next couple of months went by, and Robbie had fun playing for the Sabres. Laura went to all of the home games, and watched the away games on TV. She was really getting used to Buffalo, and was thrilled when Robbie's contract was extended for a second season. Laura also began working as a news anchor for the local ABC affiliate station, WKBW, and she loved it.

The Sabres ended up losing in the conference semifinals to the Islanders that year, but they were happy for having a decent season. Now Robbie officially had a break, but he knew the off season would be very busy. Him and Laura weren't sticking around Buffalo for long, because Maddie and OC's wedding was coming up and they were both in it. Laura was a bridesmaid, and Robbie was a groomsman. He wasn't really sure why, because even though him and OC were sort of friends now, OC still had better friends. Robbie assumed it was because of Laura.

The day after locker clean out, Robbie and Laura got on a plane to Minnesota. They wanted to visit their families for a few days before going to Boston to see Maddie and OC. Laura was helping Maddie plan the wedding, which wasn't for another month.

When their flight landed in the Boston airport, Maddie and OC were already there to greet them.

"Maddie!" Laura said, running over to give her friend a hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," Maddie said.

"What about me?" Robbie asked.

"I missed you too," Maddie said, and gave him a hug too.

"Hey OC," Robbie said. "Good to see you again."

"Yeah, especially because we're not in Chicago or Buffalo," OC said, referring to the fact that over the past few months the guys saw each other when their teams played against each other.

Robbie nodded. "It's going to be a busy off-season."

"You're telling me," OC said.

"Where's Izzy?" Laura asked, hoping to see how big she was getting. She was already five months old.

"She's with our parents," Maddie said. "They're doing some wedding stuff while we picked you two up. Before we head over there, we figured we could stop for something to eat and catch up. You guys are probably starving," Maddie said, knowing it was about dinnertime.

"Yeah, but we'll get to see Izzy soon, right?" Laura asked.

"Yep, later tonight."

The four headed out to grab some pizza and talked a little about the wedding, which was now only about a month away. Maddie and OC still had a lot of planning to do though, and tons of decisions to make.

"I've never had to make so many decisions in my whole life," Maddie said. "The dress, the cake, the music, the readings, the dinner, the flowers, the invitations . . . and the list goes on."

"Yeah, and she's driving me crazy," OC said. "Who really cares whether the border on the invitation has flowers or hearts?"

"Well, I want it to be perfect," Maddie said in defense.

"The only thing that really matters is that we're getting married," OC said. "And of course, the honeymoon details," he said with a smirk.

Maddie ignored him and turned to Laura. "What do you think?" she asked, pulling out sample invitations to show Laura. Laura pointed out the ones with the tiny gold hearts.

"I like this better. But both are nice," Laura said.

"Okay, I'll go with the hearts then. And I need help deciding on the cake details."

"I already helped with the cake," OC said.

"Well I need a second opinion," said Maddie. For the rest of dinner, Maddie asked Laura for help on deciding on the details for the wedding and reception. OC and Robbie just talked about hockey and occasionally provided some input.

After they were finished, the group of four headed over to OC's house where his parents and Maddie's were making wedding plans. Izzy was awake and sitting happily in her playpen, shaking a rattle. The two mothers, Maddie's grandmother, and both Maddie and OC's sisters were all looking through wedding magazines for ideas. The two fathers were apparently helping. Everyone looked over when the front door opened and four more people walked in, and when the baby recognized her parents as two of the people walking in the door, she began babbling happily and smiling.

"Mommy and Daddy are home," Maddie said, lifting Izzy out of the playpen.

"Oh my God, she's getting so big!" Laura said. "She's adorable!" Laura reached out toward the baby so she could hold her.

"Hi everyone," Maddie said. "You all remember Laura and Robbie, right?" Everyone nodded and said hi. Maddie's grandmother was the only one in the room that hadn't met the couple yet because she wasn't at the Olympics.

A little while later, another knock was heard at the door. OC answered it and in walked Jimmy and Rizzo, who everyone except OC was surprised to see.

"I didn't know you guys were coming over tonight!" Maddie said excited.

"We need to help with the wedding too," Jimmy said.

Rizzo spoke up. "And I have the most important job of all. Being the best man, I need to make sure OC doesn't get cold feet. Just as importantly, I need to supervise the bachelor party."

"I don't think you need to worry about Jack," Maddie said.

"Oh trust me, OC isn't really the one I'm worried about. Silky on the other hand will be there and we all know how he is." After laughing, Rizzo noticed Laura and Robbie were there too. "Hey Mac. Hey Laura. How have you two been?"

"Good," Laura answered. "It's good to see you two again," she said to both Rizzo and Jimmy.

After the four hockey players, Maddie, and Laura caught up with everything that had been going on in the past few months, they were too tired to make any more wedding plans that night. The bridal shower and bachelor party were both the following day. For the shower, the girls were going to a spa and having lunch, and for the bachelor party, the guys were going to a Red Sox game and out for drinks afterward. Laura and Robbie went upstairs to the O'Callahan's guestroom, where they were staying for the rest of the weekend and tried to get some rest before their busy day.

Laura was fast asleep and peacefully dreaming when she woke up in her and Robbie's apartment. The sun was shining in her window and she could tell it was going to be a beautiful day. Robbie was lying awake next to her and smiling at her.

"Morning, baby," he said.

"Morning," Laura said and stretched. Just then, she thought she felt something funny on her finer. She looked at her hand to see a diamond ring on her left ring finger. At first, she was completely confused. She had no idea why she was wearing the ring. Then she looked at Robbie, who was smiling even more. "Wha-" she started, before her boyfriend cut her off.

"You always look so peaceful and happy when you're sleeping. And I love seeing your smiling face when you wake up in the morning. I want to wake up to your beautiful smile every morning for the rest of my life. Laura, will you marry me?"

Just then, Laura heard music. _Damn, _she thought. _The alarm is ruining the moment Robbie is proposing to me. _The music went off and Laura heard a voice.

"Well, what do say?" said Robbie.

"Yes," Laura said.

"Then come on, get up. I know it's bright out, but we have a busy day." Laura opened her eyes to the not so familiar room. She was slightly disoriented, but a second later, she remembered when she was. At the O'Callahan's. She wasn't at her apartment. She dreamed the proposal. Laura sighed and sat up, then she looked at her left hand just to be sure. Nope, no ring. It was only a dream. Disappointed, Laura began getting out of bed and got ready for the day.

Soon after the girls were all at Maddie's parent's house for the shower, they started talking about the bachelor party that was also going on.

"We should go crash their party and make sure they're not getting into trouble," Rachel suggested.

"What could they possibly do to get in trouble?" Erin asked.

"Hire a stripper."

"They wouldn't," said Mrs. O'Callahan.

"How can you be so sure?" Rachel asked. "They are guys."

"And Dave Silk is there," laughed Erin.

"Jack knows better," Mrs. O'Callahan said.

"Yeah," Maddie agreed. "He'd probably be scared that I'd find out and have someone hurt him."

"Would you?" Laura asked.

"No. I mean, it's not like he'd be doing anything. So I guess I wouldn't kill him. Not that it would be acceptable on a regular basis, but for the bachelor party . . . it's all right. And I wouldn't worry anyway because my dad's there and so is his."

"I told Jack that we were going to hire a guy to entertain us," Erin said. "I don't think he believed me though."

"That would have been funny," Maddie's mom said.

"You know what would be more fun than that though," Maddie said. "Instead of playing shower games and sitting around here, after the spa we should go see what they're doing at the bar."

"And spy on them?" her grandmother asked. Maddie nodded. "I think that's a great idea. I've always wondered what bachelor parties were really like."

Everyone else agreed so they decided to try to find the guys after the spa.

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In the meantime, the guys were at the baseball game, enjoying watching it. Silky and a couple of Jack's other college friends began complaining that no stripper was being hired. They didn't think it was a bachelor party without a stripper or at least someone to give some lap dances.

"Erin told me the girls were hiring someone. I didn't believe her though," Jack said.

"Maybe they are," Maddie's dad said. "With my wife and mother-in-law being the masterminds they sometimes are, I wouldn't be so surprised."

"They better not be," said Jack.

"Why not. At least they know what the bachelorette party is supposed to be about," Silky said.

"It's a shower," Jack said.

"Everyone knows that code for the bachelorette party," said Rizzo. "No one just has a shower. It's either that they have a shower and bachelorette party, or one combined party."

"That's not true!" said Jack.

"Oh really?" challenged Rizzo.

"I'll prove it!"

"How?"

"After the game, we'll go find them."

"And do what?" said Silky.

"Spy on their little party and see what's really happening." Everyone started laughing at the idea. "Come on guys," Jack said.

"That's the craziest idea ever," said Robbie.

"Well, Mac, don't you want to know if your girlfriend is taking part in some of the typical bachelorette party activities? You wouldn't want her to leave you for some guy popping out of a cake, would you? And don't the rest of you want to know what bachelorette parties are really like?" Jack asked, directing the question at everyone.

"I guess," some answered. After that, it was decided. After the game, they were going to try to find the girls.

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After stopping at numerous bars, the guys were still no where to be seen. The girls decided to go back to the spa to get something to eat before heading somewhere else. When they got back to the spa, they were surprised with who was in the lobby. The guys from the bachelor party.

"What are you all doing here?" Maddie asked. They all looked guilty.

"Nothing," Jack said, trying to act like nothing was weird about them being at a spa. "What are you doing here?"

"We came back for food," Maddie said.

"Oh."

"What are you doing here?" Maddie asked again.

"Well . . . wait! Why'd you leave?" Jack asked.

"To do something."

Maddie and Jack continued going back and forth like no one else was around.

"Well, it looks like your bachelorette party is going well, and we'll be leaving now. I don't want to crash your party."

"It's not a bachelorette party. It's a shower," Maddie said.

"Told you Rizzo!" Jack said, happy that he was right. "And now you owe me fifty bucks."

"Why does he owe you fifty bucks?"

"Because." Maddie raised her eyebrows, silently telling him to elaborate. "I told him you girls weren't doing anything bachelorette-ish."

"And how would you have known?"

This is where Jack slipped. "Because we found you and saw that you were all behaving."

"So you tried to find us? To spy on us?" Maddie asked, trying to show disappointment on her face.

"Yeah," Jack said, sounding very guilty.

Maddie then smiled. "We have something to admit too," she said. "We weren't here because we were trying to spy on you."

"Really?" Jack asked. Maddie nodded sweetly. She walked up to Jack and they shared a hug and then a little kiss.

"Are you serious!?" Silky said, sounding slightly unhappy and disappointed. "This is unbelievable. You two are disgusting. Way too damn cute. And it's sickening. I don't know any other couple that would end up having the exact idea about crashing the other's party. That's just wrong!"

Everyone laughed at Silky's little tirade.

"Well, since we're all together now, why don't we just go somewhere together. We can have one big party," suggested Mr. O'Callahan. "It seems like that would suit you two lovebirds better anyway," he added, talking about his son and soon to be daughter-in-law.

Laura enjoyed the rest of the day, but all day, she couldn't get her mind off of her dream. She wished it would have been real, but it wasn't. _It must be all this wedding planning that's getting to me, _she thought.

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After the weekend, most of the wedding plans had been made and Robbie and Laura were ready to head back to Buffalo. Laura had to go back to work the next day, and Robbie was supposed to go to a charity golf event with some of the guys on the team.

Although Laura had been happy about helping with the wedding arrangements, she felt a strain being with Robbie. She wasn't sure if Robbie noticed her mood change or not. Laura really wanted to tell him about the dream, but wasn't sure how to bring it up. She didn't want him to feel pressured into doing anything.

"Well, that was a fun weekend," Robbie said after they arrived at their apartment late Sunday night.

"Yeah," Laura said in agreement.

"I'm looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow," Robbie commented. "I love the off season. I get to sleep in everyday, and I hardly have to do anything except go to an occasional charity event and stay in shape. Some people still have to work though," Robbie said, teasing Laura.

"Yeah I know," Laura sort of snapped. "You don't have to rub it in."

"Sorry," Robbie said sincerely. "I was just teasing you."

"I know, but you've made a comment about being able to be lazy all day like five times now. It's getting annoying."

"Okay, I won't do it anymore."

"Good."

"I didn't know it would bother you that much."

"Well, it does."

"Okay, if I had known before I - "

"I heard you. You don't always have to get in the last word."

"I'm not - "

"There you go again. Just stop talking!"

"But - "

"Robbie!" Laura warned him. He got the message now and didn't say anything else. He started to come under the impression that something was bothering Laura, because normally teasing her wouldn't be enough to make her mad. Come to think of it, Robbie sensed that Laura seemed on an edge ever since the shower. After Robbie finished unpacking from the past week, he joined Laura on the bed. Her eyes were closed, but he knew she was still awake.

"Laura?"

"What? I have to get up early and I'm trying to sleep."

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't it be?" she answered somewhat sarcastically.

"I don't know. Just because it seems like something might be wrong." He paused for a minute, trying to choose his next words carefully. He didn't want to make Laura any more upset by suggesting that she was upset in the first place. "I just want to know if I did something wrong."

"No, you're fine." Laura then turned and looked at him. "I'm just having a rough day."

"Okay, but if there's anything you want to talk about you'll tell me, right?"

Laura sighed. "Fine. But you have to promise that you won't take this the wrong way or get all . . . I don't know . . . weird, when I tell you."

Robbie laughed a little. "I won't. I promise. Now what is it?"

"I had a dream the other night," Laura started hesitantly. It wasn't really that Laura didn't want to share the details of her dream, but she didn't want Robbie to know how much she wished it was true.

"And?" Robbie prompted, making her continue.

"You proposed."

"Like, asked you to marry me?" Robbie asked. Laura nodded. "What'd you say?" he then asked, curious.

"I woke up before I could answer. But I would have said yes."

"Why were you scared to tell me that?" Robbie wondered.

"I don't know . . . " Laura lied.

"You do to know," Robbie said and smiled.

"I was disappointed that it was only a dream," she whispered.

If Robbie had been at all surprised by Laura's answer, he didn't show it. Instead, he said, "I've had a couple dreams that I've proposed in too. To you of course," he added, making Laura smile slightly. "I think it's all this wedding planning. We've been together for a while and now with planning a wedding, I think it's completely normal." The truth was, Robbie was pleasantly surprised to hear about Laura's dream. What made him the most happy was hearing that Laura was disappointed it hadn't been real. "So how did I do it?"

"Propose?" Laura asked.

"Yeah. Was it romantic?" he asked, looking amused.

"It was," she decided, after thinking about it for a minute. "But it was weird too," she added. Robbie laughed.

"Did I put the ring in your food or something?"

"No, I've heard of that happening before," Laura said. "I dreamt that I woke up next to you and then noticed the ring on my finger. I looked at you and then you asked me to marry you."

"That is a weird way to be proposed to," Robbie said. He thought for a minute and then asked, "So, do you have a fantasy about how you want to be proposed to?"

"Not really," Laura answered. "I want to be surprised though. It's okay to mention the idea of marriage before hand, but I do not want to see the ring ahead of time. I don't want it to be on some typical day that proposals are expected either. Other than that, I guess it wouldn't really matter how I was asked."

"So an example of a 'typical day' is like Valentine's Day, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," Laura said, nodding and shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, that already passed this year, but I'll keep in mind that holidays in general are probably a no, just to be safe," Robbie said. Before Laura could respond to that statement, he quickly changed the subject. "So, it was fun helping OC and Maddie plan the wedding. And the combined bachelor party and shower was fun, although Silky wasn't too pleased. He really wanted to hire a stripper."

"That's Silky for ya," Laura said, laughing. "I heard some of the guys were adamant about not hiring one."

"Yeah. Basically just me and OC though. Even OC and Maddie's dads didn't really care if they hired one. They thought it would have been funny."

Laura started laughing. "Come on, Robbie. I don't seriously believe that you were that against a stripper. I don't think you would have left the party if there was one."

"I might have," Robbie said.

"Yeah, sure," Laura said sarcastically. "Be honest. It's not like I'd be mad if you had stayed if there was a stripper."

"Well, maybe I wouldn't have left," Robbie admitted. "But I wasn't trying to talk them into getting one either. I think Jack was mainly against it because of Maddie's dad being there. I mean, how awkward would that be?"

"Very awkward," Laura said.

Robbie and Laura talked a little while longer before they both fell fast asleep. That night, they both had dreams about the same thing, a wedding. Although, neither one dreamed of Maddie and OC's wedding, but instead their own. Also, this seemingly pleasant dream wasn't all that nice for either Robbie or Laura, because both dream weddings ended up being disastrous. With Laura, she realized her dress didn't fit five minutes before the ceremony, and the cake ended up having the wrong names written on it. In Robbie's dream, he missed the wedding completely because he forgot that he had a hockey game that afternoon. When they woke up from their dreams, they both prayed that their real weddings would be nothing like their dream weddings.


	33. Chapter 33

Bluehaven4220: Lol, yeah they were. And I'm sorry there were no strippers. Glad you liked it though and thanks for the review.

NellieBly413672: Thanks, and I'm glad you liked it. Enjoy this chapter too.

meadow567: Nope, as you'll see, the wedding is a month later. I have the wedding and reception actually written out in this chapter. Hope you enjoy and thanks for the review!

xcapitalbarbie90: Thanks. I actually got the idea from a friend who had a dream like that. Her dream was more random though, considering she wasn't even dating anyone at the time. Oh well. Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope you like this chapter too!

A/N: Thanks again for the gret reviews. I'm sorry about the long wait. School is already taking over my life, lol. Plus, with Labor Day this past weekend, I was busy with a lot of end of summer parties and stuff like that. Anyway, here's another chapter and it's extra long. It's mostly Maddie and Jack's wedding but it has a little surprise at the end too. Hope you all like it!

Chapter 33

At the end of June, Laura and Robbie were back in Boston again for OC and Maddie's wedding. That night they went to the rehearsal dinner, and following that, the girls in the wedding party went to Maddie's parent's house to spend the night, and the guys went to the O'Callahan house.

The next morning, the girls got to St. Peter's Church in Dorchester, Massachusetts pretty early. The Mass was at one but everyone needed to get dressed, have their hair done, and do their makeup. Laura, Erin, and Rachel helped Maddie get ready before getting ready themselves. About an hour before the ceremony, Maddie's mom came in with Izzy to see how she was doing.

"Are you ready?" her mother asked. Maddie nodded. "I can't believe my baby girl's getting married," her mother continued. "I remember when you were this little," she said, motioning to Izzy and beginning to get tears in her eyes.

"Mom, don't make me cry now. I just finished my makeup," Maddie said.

"I heard Jack's nervous," she then said, changing the subject.

"I am too. I don't know why though. I guess I just am afraid something won't go according to plan. But it's not even like we wrote our own vows or anything, so it's not like I can forget those." Maddie sighed. "I just have to stay calm and try not to think about anything that could potentially go wrong."

"Everything's gonna go great," Laura told her with a smile. "And you look beautiful." Then Laura turned to Maddie's mom and reached out toward Izzy. "And Izzy, you look beautiful too," she added, taking the baby, who squealed delightfully. "You know, my offer still stands to watch her while you're on your honeymoon," Laura told Maddie, half joking. She had already offered several times and had been graciously turned down.

"I know, and I appreciate it," Maddie said. "But you're going back to Buffalo. It would just make more sense to have my parents take her."

"Are you more excited for the wedding or the honeymoon?" Rachel asked.

"All of it," Maddie said.

"You're so lucky," Erin started. "I wish I was going to the Carribean." Everyone nodded in agreement.

Maddie and Jack were leaving three days after the wedding for their honeymoon in the St. Barth's. Jack booked a beautiful, brand-new oceanfront hotel. Neither of them had ever been to the Carribean before, but Maddie heard St. Barth's was beautiful. There were supposed to be beautiful, quiet beaches and Jack already had a long list of other things to do and places to go.

Soon it was time for Maddie and the rest of the wedding party to line up.

"Is everyone seated and stuff?" Maddie asked Erin, who had been looking at the seats from the slightly opened door at the back of the church.

"Yeah. The last of the guys from the team are sitting now. And Verchota is waving like an idiot to OC and Rizzo."

"I'm just happy most of the guys could make it. I know most of them were flying in this morning," Maddie said.

The processional music then began and Erin and Jimmy started walking down the aisle. Laura and Robbie followed and then Rachel walked down by herself. Rizzo was already waiting at the altar because he was the best man. Finally, it was time for Maddie to be escorted down by her father.

When Jack could finally see Maddie standing near the doors at the back of the church, and began smiling even more than he already was. He couldn't believe this moment was finally here. While Maddie's dad walked her down the aisle, he saw him talking to her quietly, and sort of wondered what he was saying.

"I can't believe you're getting married," Maddie's dad whispered to her. "Here, I thought you'd be my little girl forever." Maddie just looked at him and smiled. "I know I didn't really approve of Jack at first, but he really is a good guy. And I know he'll make you happy."

"Thanks dad," Maddie said.

"Just make sure you don't forget about me, now that I'm not the most important guy in your life anymore," he joked.

"I won't. And I promise no matter where we end up moving, I'll always come back to visit."

They had made it up to the altar now, Maddie looked at Jack and smiled, who was beaming back at her. She took his hand and stepped up next to him. Throughout the Mass, Jack and Maddie kept glancing at one another and smiling, silently saying they couldn't believe this was really their wedding. After the readings, the couple exchanged rings and vows and were then officially married. Once the rest of the Mass was over and everyone processed back down the aisle, the wedding party piled into the limo that was taking them to the reception. The reception was going to be held at the Castle in Boston, which was a beautiful mansion right on the Boston University campus.

In order for Maddie and Jack to make an entrance, the limo driver drove around a little while to give everyone time to get from the church to the Castle. The rest of the wedding party went inside first, and then Maddie and Jack went in. Rachel announced their arrival.

"Now I'd like to introduce, for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Jack and Maddie O'Callahan!" Everyone clapped and cheered and they stepped onto the dance floor for the first dance. After they finished, everyone else started taking the dance floor.

A while later, just before dinner, the bridesmaids, groomsmen, and Maddie's dad did their toasts. Rizzo went first.

"Could I have everyone's attention please," Rizzo began. "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Mike, the best man. Well, first I'd like to congratulate Jack and Maddie on their wedding. I wish you both the best of luck and you better keep in touch way out there in Chicago." Rizzo went on, thanking both Maddie and Jack's parents and saying a few other things about the newlyweds. He made a joke about the honeymoon and them already having Izzy, which turned out not to be as funny as it was awkward. Luckily, the awkwardness made everyone laugh anyway.

After Rizzo was finished, it was Rachel's turn. She said a lot of the traditional, sentimental sister things to Maddie. Everyone else in the wedding party gave their toasts, and Robbie's ended up being the funniest without him even trying. He went after Laura.

"Okay, now that that girly, best friends forever stuff is over, I have my speech," Robbie said as he took the microphone. "Okay, so, in all honesty, I've been trying to write a speech for a few days now. Originally, I planned on saying some crap about how I'm so happy two of my good friends are getting married and whatnot, but then I realized something. I'm still not even sure why I'm standing here! Last year at this time, we were literally fighting each other," Robbie said, motioning toward Jack. "We hated each other. If someone told me then that I would be standing at his wedding as a groomsman a year later, I would have laughed in their face." He paused for a minute before continuing.

"Well, anyway, I am here. At first, I thought it was mainly because Laura was in the wedding and it would make things easier to have me in it too. But then I realized something else. It wasn't because Laura was in the wedding, but because, whether or not we like to admit it, we are friends. No matter what either of us says, we really are friends. So I'd just like to thank Herb for that, even though he's not here to hear it. So anyway, congrats guys," he said, holding a glass up to the newlyweds.

"Oh yeah," he added. "If anyone asks me about my speech ever again, I'll say that I was drunk and I had no idea what I was saying." After everyone laughed a little, he continued. "So yeah. Anyway, congratulations again. I hope you two have a happy life together. Well, actually the three of you. We can't forget about Izzy." When Robbie was finished, Maddie's dad stood up to give the next toast.

After saying a few things about how happy he was, he tried to make a joke about the cost of the wedding. "Now, Maddie wanted the wedding at St. Peter's, because it's beautiful. And she wanted the reception here, because it's beautiful. And the honeymoon is in St. Barth's, which is also beautiful. I know I'm not paying for the honeymoon part, but the rest is definitely putting a big dent in my pocket. I may even have to take a mortgage on the house after my Visa bill comes in the mail." Some of the crowd laughed. "It has definitely been worth it to see her smiling the whole afternoon and evening though," he said with a smile. "But I hope both of you remember that when Izzy gets married, make sure she has low standards, because you'll go broke paying for her wedding. I actually encourage you to talk her into eloping in Vegas because it's a lot more cost effective."

"Oh trust me, we won't need to worry about that," Jack said. "Izzy is never ever getting married. She's not allowed out of the house until she turns thirty, and she's not allowed to date until fifty." Everyone laughed.

After everyone else was done with their toasts, Jack stood up.

"Okay, I'm gonna make this fast, because I know everyone is hungry. First off, I'd like to thank everyone for coming today to celebrate with us." Jack went on to thanks his parents and sister, Maddie's parents, grandmother, and sister, Rizzo, Jimmy, and Robbie, and the rest of his teammates for coming. "And yeah, I hate to admit it, but I guess Robbie and I are friends. I owe that to Maddie and Laura though. If they weren't friends, we'd probably just be enemies turned teammates or whatever. Most importantly, I'd like to thank my beautiful wife Maddie. I thank God every day that I have you in my life and I cannot imagine living without you or Isabelle. Thank you for making me the happiest man alive and for giving me our beautiful daughter." Jack looked at Izzy, who was sitting on his mother's lap. "I love you, too, Izzy. And you look just as beautiful as mommy does today."

"Dada!" she screamed happily. Maddie, Jack, and the almost everyone in the room that heard the baby, immediately looked at her.

"Oh my God!" Jack said. "Izzy, say that again." Izzy stubbornly sat bouncing in her grandma's lap, not knowing what all the commotion was about.

"Come on Izzy," Maddie said. "Please say it again. Who's that?" she asked, pointing to Jack.

"Dada!" Izzy screamed again. "Dada, dada, dada!"

"She just said Dada!" Jack said happily, hugging his wife. "This is amazing. Whoever would have thought, on our wedding day, in the middle of my toast, no less, Izzy says her first real word."

"Yeah, in the middle of your toast," Rizzo prompted, reminding Jack to continue.

"Oh yeah, sorry. I'm almost done. Well, I just wanted to finish by saying thanks again for coming today and I can't wait to start my life as being Maddie's husband." Everyone clapped and then began getting in line at the buffet.

After dinner, it was time to cut the cake and toss the bouquet and garter.

The unmarried girls stood on the dance floor, waiting for Maddie to toss the bouquet. After she tossed it, Maddie turned around to see that Laura caught it. Laura was excited, and as the girls were all crowding around Laura and Maddie was talking to her, the guys were standing off to the side.

Jack elbowed Robbie. "So, what do you think about that?" he asked.

Robbie looked over at him. "She's supposed to be the next to get married, right?" Jack nodded. "Well, I don't know. Is anyone else engaged here?"

"I don't think so," Jack responded.

"Well, then maybe. You never know," was all Robbie said.

Jack tossed the garter next. Very surprisingly, Verchota and Silky both caught it.

"I got it!" Verchota said.

"No, I had it first!" Silky said.

"No," Verchota said back.

"Guys, whoever caught it means you're getting married next," Rizzo pointed out. Then, both Verchota and Silky handed it to Rizzo.

"I don't want it then," Verchota said.

"Me either," said Silky.

"Okay, I'll have it. I want to get married next."

A minute later, Silky suddenly grabbed it.

"Hey, I thought you didn't want it!" Rizzo protested.

"I changed my mind." Silky then explained why. "Laura caught the bouquet. If she's getting married next, and I'm getting married next, I guess that means we're marrying each other."

"You better let Robbie in on your little plan there, Silky," Bah said. "Somehow I don't think he'll go for that." Bah looked over to Robbie and Laura, who were already on the dance floor together again. The rest of the guys that were there from the team looked over too. They had all noticed Robbie and Laura laughing and dancing together the entire night.

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"I had so much fun at the wedding," Laura said after her and Robbie got to their hotel room. They were staying in a hotel in Boston for the next couple days until they flew back to Buffalo.

"Me too," Robbie said, half absentmindedly.

"Are you okay?" Laura asked. "You seem lost in space or something."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Robbie replied. "I'm just exhausted. It's been a long weekend so far."

"Yeah, you're telling me," Laura said, with a yawn shortly following. "But I'm really not that tired yet," she said.

"Okay, sure," Robbie said, laughing a little.

"I'm not. I still have some energy," Laura said, trying to hint at something.

"Why don't we just rest tonight and tomorrow we'll spend the day using the energy."

"We're going to meet the guys tomorrow though," Laura said. Since most of the guys were still in town until the next evening, and Maddie and Jack weren't leaving yet, they all planned on getting together for lunch.

"Well, we can still spend the morning celebrating," Robbie suggested.

"Celebrating what?"

"Well, you know. The wedding and everything," he answered awkwardly.

"All right. I guess that works for me."

"Trust me. You'll thank me for it tomorrow."

Laura smiled and kissed Robbie goodnight before turning out the lights.

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That night, Laura had a hard time sleeping. She kept tossing and turning, and woke up nearly every hour. The one time, Robbie was awake when she woke up. He was running his fingers along her arm, down to her fingers, and back up her arm again.

"What are you doing?" Laura asked. Robbie jumped.

"Nothing!" he exclaimed startled. "Sorry, I was just awake and just . . . " he trailed off.

"That's okay."

"Did I wake you?"

"No. I can't sleep."

"Oh. Neither can I," Robbie admitted. After talking a few minutes, they both fell asleep again.

When the sun came up, Laura started waking up again. She didn't feel refreshed and awake at all though. Laura realized that Robbie must have been up, because she felt his weight back on the bed again, and he sort of leaned over her. She opened her eyes and Robbie quicky sat up and moved away from her.

"You're awake?" he asked, sounding almost disappointed. "It's still early. Go back to sleep."

"What time is it?"

"Only seven-thirty."

"All right. I'm still tired," Laura said, and decided to try to sleep a little while longer. In the mean time, Robbie stayed awake and watched her sleep for a while before getting up.

About an hour later, Laura woke up again, and this time for good. After taking a shower, Laura was finishing getting ready in the bathroom when Robbie came to the door. He was just standing there, watching her.

"See something you like?" she asked.

"Maybe," he answered.

"I'm almost ready. I figured we could go to Quincy Market and do a little shopping before meeting everyone for lunch."

"I thought you wanted to spend the morning here?" Robbie asked her, teasing her. "Last night you wanted-"

"I know. But we're only in Boston a couple days. We can do _that_ in Buffalo anytime."

"Okay," Robbie replied, understanding her reasoning. Laura turned around to start walking out of the bathroom. "Wait," Robbie started. "Aren't you going to put jewelry on?"

"Yeah," Laura answered, giving Robbie a funny look. She had no idea why he was even asking.

"Well, your jewelry box is in the bathroom, right?"

"Well, yeah, but I'm just wearing the earrings I already have out. They're on the night stand."

"Oh. So you aren't even going in your jewelry box?"

"No," Laura answered. She thought Robbie was acting very strange but just brushed it off. A few minutes later they left to walk around the city.

Forty five minutes before they were supposed to meet everyone for lunch, Robbie was tired of shopping, and began complaining to Laura.

"Can we please take a break, Laur? We've been shopping all morning and there's nothing else you need. Plus, you're probably about to max out your credit card."

"I am not," Laura said. Then she looked at her watch. "We still have almost an hour until we have to meet everyone. What are we going to do until then if we don't shop? I'm not going back to the hotel for twenty minutes."

"We'll head over to the restaurant."

"And sit there for a half hour? Robbie, the restaurant is a ten minute walk from here, if that."

"Well, we can be the first ones there."

"No."

"Please. I just want to relax."

"Go ahead. I'll meet you there," Laura said, starting to walk away from her boyfriend. Robbie grabbed her arm.

"Please?" he asked, almost begging.

"Rob-bie," Laura said, making it clear that she wasn't happy. "I don't want to sit around and wait for everyone."

"Come on. We've been shopping for a few hours. If you really want, we can go back after lunch. I just really want to sit and get a drink or something."

"Fine," Laura said, with an exasperated sigh. "Let's go."

When they got to the restaurant, Robbie and Laura sat at the bar and waited for their friends. Robbie was happy, but Laura clearly wasn't. She didn't understand why Robbie was being so insistent. If he really wanted to sit, couldn't he have sat outside a store. There were enough benches around.

"What do you want to drink?"

"Nothing," Laura said in response to Robbie.

After a few minutes of sitting there in silence, Laura began tapping her fingers in the bar.

"Don't look so bored," laughed Robbie.

"That's kinda hard when I am bored," Laura said, annoyed.

"Let's play a game," Robbie suggested. He grabbed a napkin and asked Laura for a pen. "Hangman. I'll go first." Laura sighed. "Fine. You can go first," he said.

"I don't want to play hangman," she said, and went back to staring blankly at the bar's tv.

"Come on," Robbie said.

"No."

"One time?"

"No!"

"Laura-"

"Fine! I'll play one time. That's it, all right. Just to get you to shut up about it." Robbie smiled in victory.

"Guess a letter," he said. "It's a phrase."

"X," Laura said seriously. Robbie gave her a dissatisfied look, but drew the base for the hangman.

"Q," Laura said next.

"Come on, Laura."

"What? Those are my guesses."

"Guess real letters."

"Those are real letters," she said in a duh tone. After Robbie drew the next hangman line, Laura said, "Z."

"If you're not gonna try, why are we bothering?"

"Then let's not bother," Laura said. "You're the one that wanted to play. I don't know why you're being so adamant about it."

"Just guess another letter," Robbie insisted. Laura was shocked that he still wanted to play. Even after all of that. Laura decided to stop being difficult and just get it over with.

"R," she said.

Robbie marked down the two R's that were in the third word of the puzzle.

"T," she said next.

There were no T's.

"E," Laura said.

Robbie marked the 'E' as being the last letter in the puzzle. After a few more guesses Laura had more letters filled in, but she technically lost. Robbie began drawing the eyes and mouth for the hangman.

"Robbie, I lost," Laura said. "You have to tell me what it says now."

"No, I still have a few things to add. Plus, he always needs a hat." Laura shook her head but laughed a little.

"You're too much. Okay, W," she said, getting back to the game. Now she had a bunch of letters filled in. With her last guess, the puzzle read

"WILL YOU -ARRY -E."

Laura thought for a minute without guessing and then it dawned on her. "I think I know it," she said, smiling because she figured it out.

"What?" Robbie asked, smiling back at her.

"Will you marry me?" Laura said as a question, hoping she was right so the game would be over.

"That's not fair I asked you first," Robbie said seriously.

"What?" Laura asked, very confused. She had no idea what he was talking about. Then Robbie opened a small square box in front of Laura, revealing a beautiful diamond ring. Laura gasped as tears came to her eyes.

"Oh my God," she said, crying, then looking back at the hangman puzzle. Then Laura looked at Robbie again. "Oh my God."

"Laura, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

"Yes!" she said, nodding her head. Laura wiped her face as Robbie put the ring on her finger. As soon as it was on, she jumped up off the barstool and wrapped her arms in a hug around Robbie. "I love you!"

"I love you too," he said.

After a passionate kiss, Laura pulled away and looked at the ring. "Oh my God," she said, for the third time in the last minute. "I'm engaged!" She hugged Robbie again.

"I've been trying to ask all morning," Robbie admitted. "First you kept waking up, so I couldn't put the ring on while you were sleeping. Then you wouldn't go in your jewelry box. And you almost killed me when I made you come here. Then getting you to play hangman! I was about to give up!" Laura laughed.

"Sorry I made it so difficult."

"That's okay. It was worth it," Robbie said, kissing her. "And I had to do it this morning, because I didn't want anyone to ruin the surprise."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I told OC, Rizzo, and Jimmy yesterday at the wedding. And both your family and mine knew I was doing it sometime after the wedding. I had actually wanted to talk to Maddie and have her attach it to the bouquet and have her purposly throw it to you, but I didn't want to steal Maddie and OC's big day."

"Oh my God! Robbie, this is incredible. I'm so excited, and happy, and . . . just thrilled!" she said, trying to think the best word she could use to describe her emotions. "I'm engaged! I'm actually engaged!" she said, practically jumping up and down.

Not even a minute later, Silky, Rammer, and Verchota walked in the restaurant and up to the bar where they saw Robbie and Laura. She ran over to them.

"I'm engaged!!" she said, holding out her left hand for them to see the ring.

"You proposed?" Rammer asked Robbie, clearly excited. The other two guys were shocked and looking at the ring. Robbie nodded.

"Congratulations," Rammer said.

"Yeah, congratulations," Silky and Verchota said in agreement.

The other guys began filing in the restaurant soon after, and a waitress got a table ready for everyone. They were all excited for Robbie and Laura. Jack, Maddie, and Izzy were the last to arrive.

"Maddie!" Laura said running over to greet her friend. "Guess what?!"

"What?" Maddie asked, unable to imagine why Laura was so excited.

"Are you-" Jack started. He was about to say engaged before Laura stopped him.

"Jack, shut up!"

"Robbie proposed this morning. I'm engaged!"

"Oh my God! Laura, congratulations!" Maddie said. She gave Laura a hug. "I'm so happy for you!"

"I still can't believe it," Laura said. After talking about her engagement for a few minutes, Laura diverted the conversation back to Maddie and Jack. She didn't want to take anything away from their post wedding day bliss.

"How's married life?" Laura asked.

"Well, we're married," said Maddie. "What can I say? It doesn't feel much different. But at the same time, it is amazing."

"So how did he do it?" Maddie asked, about the proposal.

"Well . . . " Laura began, and explained the events of that morning.

"That's so cute," said Maddie after Laura finished. The guys agreed, but didn't think it was nearly as cute as Maddie thought it was.

"But seriously, Maddie. I don't want to take anything away from you and Jack. So how was the rest of the night?"

"It was out _wedding_ night, Laura," Jack said. "What more can we say? Just because we already have a daughter doesn't mean we can't do the same newlywed activities that everyone else does." Laura laughed and Maddie blushed a little.

"Okay, I get it," Laura said.

The team, the two girls, and Izzy enjoyed their afternoon together. After it was over, most of the guys were heading to the airport.

"Well, I'll probably see everyone again soon," Mark said. "After all, it seems like there might be one wedding or celebration a year, so we'll all get together again soon."

"Yeah, Robbie agreed. "It was great seeing everyone though. And you can all be guaranteed to see another wedding invitation in your mailboxes soon."

"Have you picked a date already?" Rizzo asked.

"No," Laura said. "We haven't really talked about anything. Maybe tonight. But then again, probably not until tomorrow. We have something else to do tonight," Laura said as she looked at Robbie and winked.

A/N: So. . . what did everyone think?


	34. Chapter 34

Bluehaven4220: Thanks! That idea came from a website actually, lol. I google searched proposal ideas. Hey, whatever works, right? Thanks for the review.

Nelliebly413672: Thanks, glad you liked it! And yeah, he finally proposed. I remember someone reviewing in my last story that they thought he'd propose after the Olympics, but I had already decided to write this fic, so I was like no he's not, lol. Anyway, thanks again for the review.

justlikewedo: Thanks! I hope you enjoy this chapter too.

xcapitalbarbie90: Aw, thanks. I'm glad you liked it. And enjoy the chapter.

meadow567: That' cool. Congrats on being an aunt! And nice choice for the name, whoever picked it. Thanks for the review and I'm glad you liked it. I wanted the proposal to be unique and different from the normal cliche.

A/N: The chapter is finally up... sorry for the wait. You all know the deal, school literally rules my life. I'm lucky to have any free time at all this semester. Oh well. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy. It's sort of fillerish, but, well, just read it. And please review! By theway, thanks to everyone again for all the reviews! I'm glad everyone enjoyed the way Robbie proposed . . . and tried, lol.

Chapter 34

In early fall, Robbie had started back at hockey again, and both him and Laura were busy planning their wedding. It was still far away, because they weren't having it until the summer when Robbie would have time off and they could be in Minnesota. Waiting almost a year to get married didn't bother either one though. Laura especially loved the idea that Robbie was her fiancee. Whenever she saw someone she knew that she hadn't seen since getting engaged, she would point out the ring on her finger and just glow with happiness. Robbie loved seeing Laura so happy, and he too never got tired of not only referring to Laura as his girlfriend, but as his fiancee. The couple had truly enjoyed almost every moment of their engagement bliss so far.

With everything going on though, Robbie was completely drained and by February, he was thankful for the much needed All-Star break. A week before the break though, Laura gave him some news that meant he wouldn't have a lot of time to rest over the break. She had invited OC, Maddie, and Izzy to come up and stay with them for a few days.

"I really hope you're kidding, Laura," he said.

"No. I thought it'd be fun to have them up. And we haven't seen Izzy in months. Maddie said she's walking and talking a little, and if we don't see them now, we won't until our wedding, which is still more than five months away."

"But Laura, this is supposed to be a few days of rest for me. Now I have to entertain a one-year-old for the week?"

"It won't be bad. Oc's not complaining about it. And it's not like we're watching Izzy. Maddie and Jack are going to be taking care of her. I just thought it'd be fun to have them up for a couple days," Laura said.

"Well, didn't you think that maybe it would have been nice to run it by me first? After all, it is my apartment you're deciding to let them crash at," Robbie said, annoyed. He wasn't trying to start an argument with Laura, but he was exhausted from everything that had been going on and it started to take a toll on his mood.

"_Your_ apartment?" Laura asked incredulously. "Excuse me, but what makes it just your apartment. I've been living here almost as long as you, and we are engaged! I have just as much right to invite people over as you."

"Yeah, you're living here, but whose paying the rent?" Robbie asked rhetorically. This hit a nerve with Laura.

"Fine! I'll pay half of the rent if that's what you want. It's not like I haven't offered before. But you're the one that keeps insisting that you're making more than enough to pay for it." Then, before Robbie could even get another word out, Laura continued. "You know what. Never mind. I won't pay for it. I'll just get my own apartment and that will solve everything. Then you won't need to worry about our friends ruining your much needed, week off, rest." Again, before Robbie could respond, Laura added, "And you know what else?! You can forget that romantic evening we had planned for tomorrow night. After all, you need the rest." Laura said this with a sarcastic tone.

As Laura left the living room and went into the bedroom they shared, Robbie sighed. He really didn't want to spend the night doing damage control for acting like a jerk.

As it turned out though, Robbie didn't need to do damage control that night, or the next. Laura had decided to teach him a little lesson and left. Robbie had no idea where she went, but he guessed she was at a hotel or something. He wasn't worried about Laura doing anything too drastic, like breaking off the engagement or anything, because he saw her on the news the next evening, and she still had the shimmering diamond on her finger. The only thing that did concern Robbie was that he had no way of getting in contact with her to apologize.

Two nights after Laura left, Robbie had a game and although Laura didn't greet him after like usual, he saw her in the stands. He talked to a few of his teammates and asked for their advice.

"You should probably just like, show up at the station or something when she's there. Since that's the only place you know she'll be," someone suggested. Robbie liked that idea, but since she did the evening newscast and he was leaving the next morning for New York City to play the Islanders, it wouldn't work out too well.

A few other guys had other suggestions too, but none of them would work for all different reasons.

"Well, since you are talking about Laura, it'll probably just blow over eventually. Lack of communication is both of your specialties. Eventually you're bound to run into each other and then talk everything out," Rammer said, who knew Laura and their relationship best out of anyone.

Robbie knew Rammer was right. He just had hoped he would see Laura before he left the next morning.

That night, Robbie's phone rang just before he got into bed. It was Laura and she sounded like absolutely nothing had ever been wrong.

"I'm really sorry I haven't been able to talk much the last couple days, but I've been so busy. Between making more plans for the wedding and work, I've had almost no time."

"That's okay," Robbie said, slightly confused. Did he miss something? Like them completely making up? _No, _he thought. _Missing us making up isn't possible. I could never forget make-up sex. _"Uh, where are you?"

"Right now, I'm at the Marriott on Millersport Highway. The one right near the UB North campus. But my landlord is supposed to call me tomorrow about when I can move in my apartment."

By now, Robbie decided that Laura must be testing him, so he decided to play along. "Oh really? Well, that's nice."

"I was at the game tonight. You played well," Laura said.

"Thanks. I was hoping you'd come down after the game."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I had to call my mom about the reception. She needs to know how many we're planning on inviting."

"That's okay," Robbie said, continuing to play along like nothing was wrong. After all, if Laura was happily mentioning the wedding, she couldn't be too mad at him. This went on about fifteen minutes, and then neither could stand it anymore.

"I'm sorry," both Robbie and Laura said at the exact same time. Then they laughed.

"We need to talk," Robbie said.

"Yeah, because I'm sick of trying to get you to ask to see me or something," Laura said. Robbie laughed. It was true. He knew Laura was up to something and all along, she had been trying to get Robbie to ask to see her. Since Robbie wanted to win whatever game they had been playing, he refused to directly ask to see her.

That night, Laura ended up coming back to the apartment they both agreed they shared, and Robbie decided that it was in fact a good idea that the O'Callahan's were coming to visit.

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Three days, later, the O'Callahan's arrived at Robbie and Laura's apartment.

"Say hi to Uncle Robbie and Aunt Laura, Izzy," Maddie told the toddler.

Instead of saying anything to the unfamiliar people though, the little girl buried her head in her father's shoulder.

"She's playing shy," Jack explained. "Come on Izzy, say hi," he urged.

"That's okay, she just doesn't remember us," said Laura. "I can't believe how big she's getting though. And she's so adorable!"

"She is," agreed Robbie.

A half hour later, Maddie and OC were sitting on the couch, chatting with Laura and Robbie while Izzy was playing with a few toys that Laura had bought for her goddaughter. She had warmed up to Robbie and Laura quickly.

"Mama," she said, holding a toy out for Maddie to see.

"Yeah, that's nice," said Maddie.

"Ball," she said, happy that she knew what the toy was. She then trotted over to Robbie, who was sitting on the floor, and handed him the ball. Then Izzy sat on the floor across from him.

"She wants you to play with her," Jack said. "She loves rolling the ball back and forth."

Robbie began playing with Izzy, rolling the ball back and forth. After ten minutes, Izzy decided that she was bored, and wanted to play with a different toy. Since Robbie played with her before, Izzy thought she had a new best friend and wanted him to play again. She started bringing all of her toys over to Robbie and handing them to him.

"Thank you," he said, when she handed him a block. She handed him another. "Thank you," he said again. This went on for a minute and after Robbie had more toys than he knew what to do with, Izzy began taking them away. She walked over to Laura and handed them to her. Laura began building a tower with the blocks, which Izzy liked.

"She's bored with you," Jack told Robbie. "No offense or anything."

"None taken," he said as he watched Laura continually build block towers, which Izzy proceeded to knock over. He smiled at the thought that within a few years, they would probably have their own daughter or son.

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The remainder of the hockey season went by faster than either Robbie or Laura could imagine. Robbie had some disappointing news from Sabres management before leaving for Minnesota though. They informed him that he would not be playing in Buffalo the next season, as he was being traded to the New York Rangers. He decided to tell Laura as soon as he found out. Robbie hoped she'd take the news okay, but wasn't too sure.

"Hey Laura, you know how we talked about looking for a house over the summer so we could move in after the wedding?" Robbie asked as Laura was packing for the summer in Minnesota.

"Yeah. Did you find something?" she asked.

"Not really. But about that . . . what would happen if I was traded?"

"Well, hopefully that won't happen," Laura said. It wasn't that she would be opposed to moving somewhere else, but if they bought a house and had to move soon after, it wouldn't make much sense.

"So you like Buffalo a lot?" Robbie asked, interpreting Laura's words as she didn't want to leave Buffalo.

"Well, I like it. And I'd love to buy a house here. It would suck if we bought one and found out right after that you're being traded though."

"So, if we didn't buy a house yet, you wouldn't mind moving?" Robbie asked.

"No," she said shrugging.

"Okay. Would you be really disappointed if we live in an apartment for a while longer though?" he asked, knowing they would be living in an apartment in New York City.

"Well, I really want a house, but if you think it's better to wait a while, we can." After pausing for a minute, Laura realized what was going on. "Did you get traded or something?"

"Yeah, kind of," he answered, sounding almost guilty.

"Kind of?"

"Well, yeah. I did."

"Wow!" Laura said, not hiding the shock in her voice.

"Are you upset?"

"No, I'm surprised though. I didn't really expect it."

"Me either."

"Where are we moving?" Laura asked.

"So, you're not mad? You want to move?"

"Well, for one, we are getting married. So I don't have much of a choice." Laura joked, then smiled to give Robbie assurance. Laura then walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "But, either way, you mean everything to me, and I want to be with you. Besides, it's not like I have a reason to stay in Buffalo. Everything I have here, I'll have someplace else. Which brings me to my second point . . . how happy I am sort of depends on where we're moving."

"New York," Robbie said.

"New York?" Laura asked, her eyes growing wide. Robbie wasn't exactly sure whether she was happy or not. "Like the city?" Robbie decided she wasn't happy.

"Look, I know it's big, but really it's not that bad. I'm sure it'll be okay. I mean-"

"So you're talking about the city. New York City? Like the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, Madison Square Gardens, the Statue of Liberty . . . and everything else?"

"Yeah," Robbie said. "If you don't like it . . . " Robbie started.

"Are you crazy?! Robbie, you're talking about New York City! I won't like it - I'll love it! You're talking about a girl that absolutely loves shopping, and putting her in a city with endless designer stores! How could I not like it? If anyone doesn't like it, you won't like it. I'll spend more time shopping than with you!"

"So you're excited?"

"Yeah! And New York has tons of great news stations. Maybe I'll be on Good Morning America or the Today show or something. And maybe I'll get to be one of the hosts of the Macy's parade or something. When I was little, I used to dream of being just like Frank Blair and anchoring live at the parade. I know anchoring a nationally ranked newscast is probably a one in a million shot, but I know I'll find something. And I've always wanted to visit New York, but never thought I'd have the chance to move there!" After Laura finished rambling on, obviously very excited, Robbie jumped in again.

"Well, I'm glad you're happy. I was worried you'd hate the idea."

"Living in New York will be great. More shopping than I can imagine. What girl would hate that?"

"I don't know," Robbie said, laughing.

Later that night, Laura and Robbie finished packing for Minnesota so they would be ready to leave the next morning. They both knew that in a little less than three months they would be married, and now neither could wait.


	35. Chapter 35

NellieBly413672: I'm glad you liked it and thanks for the review! Your review gave me a good idea for the chapter, so thanks. Enjoy reading it!

Bluehaven4220: Thanks. I'm glad you liked it, and Izzy is cute. She'll have a few more scenes coming up, not really in this chapter, but in the last couple. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

meadow567: I'm glad. :) Thanks for the review!

justlikewedo: Yeah, school's a pain. I just keep telling myself that once I'm done with undergrad and then med school, being a doctor will be worth all the work I put myself through. At least it better be, lol. Anyway, I'm glad you liked the chapter and thanks for the review!

A/N: Okay, I'm sooo sorry. I know it's been like two weeks. I feel awful. School is actually what's awful, lol. I don't have time for anything else! Luckily I had some time today and ended up writing the whole chapter. So here it is. There's either one or two more in the story, so it's actually just about done. Enjoy! (And I'm really sorry again.)

Chapter 35

The early summer months came and went, and the end of July meant Robbie and Laura's wedding was only a week away. Laura's sister, Ashley was her maid of honor, and Verchota was Robbie's best man. Although most wouldn't consider Verchota to be the ideal pick for a best man, Robbie had good reasons for choosing him. He knew Verchota would pull through and give Robbie the help to get through the wedding, and whether anyone believed it or not, he was actually very dependable.

Verchota was just as shocked as everyone else that Robbie asked him, but excited. A best man had so many responsibilities, and most importantly, at least in Verchota's opinion, was planning the Bachelor party.

Robbie's brother and sister, and Laura's brother also had small parts in the wedding, as did a few other friends. Maddie was a bridesmaid, Izzy was the flower girl, and Bah and Mark were groomsmen.

Unfortunately, Buzz and Gail were not able to make it to the wedding. They were still in Switzerland, where Buzz was playing hockey. Laura did hear the very exciting news that they had a son a few months before though.

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"I need help, Verchota," Robbie said at the bachelor party, which was three nights before the wedding. They were just at Verchota's house, but in about fifteen minutes, everyone was going to get a surprise that only Verchota and Silky knew about.

"Yep, I'm your guy. The best man. I can help," Verchota said proudly as some of the other guys rolled their eyes.

"I need help with my vows," Robbie told him.

"Uh, okay."

"You didn't write your vows yet?" OC asked. "Your wedding is three days away."

"Whose idea was writing your own vows?" Silk asked.

"Hers. And I figured it'd be no problem."

"See, that's why Maddie and I went with the standard vows," OC told him.

"It's too late for that now," Robbie said, regretfully.

"Just tell her you'll love her forever," suggested Verchota easily.

"I need more than that."

"How about we talk about this later? Like not at your Bachelor Party. You're supposed to be having fun."

"I am."

"Fun as in not thinking about Laura and the wedding."

"Yeah, come on Mac. Don't be like OC," Silky said.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" OC asked.

"Nothing," Silky replied. Then he changed the subject. "Is it almost ten?"

"Yeah, why?" Bah asked. Just then there was a knock at the door. Bah smiled with a knowing grin and said, "You did not, did you?"

"Did not what?" Mark asked.

"I think someone hired strippers," Bah said, still smiling.

"You thought right," Silky said, jumping up to get the door.

Sure enough, three girls came in to put on a show for the guys, which everyone enjoyed. Over the past year, a lot of the guys had developed serious relationships, and even though they didn't want to admit they enjoyed it, they did.

By the end of the night, Silky, Verchota, and even Rizzo got lap dances, though Rizzo was hesitant at first. Originally, Robbie was entitled to the lap dance that Rizzo got, but he refused, happy with just enjoying the show. One of the girls looked a little like Laura, with blonde hair and blue eyes, so Robbie made a mental note to see if Laura would give him an even better show, which he knew he'd enjoy even more.

After the party, Robbie was exhausted and when he got home, he rolled into bed next to Laura, who was already asleep. She stirred and sort of woke up.

"How was the party?" she asked sleepily.

"Fun," he said, giving her a kiss.

"Were there strippers?"

"Yeah. They were all right, I guess. I would have enjoyed a show from you more though."

Laura smiled. "Maybe we can work something out," she said. Robbie smiled back and gave her another kiss before she fell back asleep.

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Three days later, Robbie and Laura's wedding date had finally arrived. Since they didn't want to jinx themselves, they stuck with tradition and decided not to see each other before the ceremony. Both were in separate dressing rooms in the church, getting ready with the help of their side of the wedding party.

Robbie was standing in front of the mirror and fixing his tie.

"Ready for the big moment?" Verchota asked him.

"I never realized why guys were nervous before their wedding, but now I know," was Robbie's reply.

"So does that mean yes or no?" Verchota asked, teasing him.

"I'm ready, but at the same time, I'm nervous and not ready."

"Okay, the answer I was looking for was yes," his best man replied.

"I'm ready, it's just . . . I'm gonna spend the rest of my life with Laura. We've spent the last two years together, and the past several months of that engaged, but it's not the same. Will being married change anything?"

Verchota could tell Robbie's nerves were getting to him, so he decided to joke around a little. "Well, I heard the sex isn't as good. But other than that, it probably won't be much different."

Robbie smiled but rolled his eyes. "Do you remember after graduation when me and Laura broke up?" Verchota nodded. "And how you told me that I was better off without her because I deserved someone that really cared about me and would do anything for me?"

"Well, I don't think I used those words exactly. You're making me out to be all sentimental and emotional. But I remember saying something to that extent."

"Okay, well, do you still think that way, or do you think we're right for each other?"

"Mac, I was only saying those things because I know how upset you were with the breakup. I mean, I liked Laura. At the time though, it just didn't seem like you two were right for each other."

"But you think we'll last now, right?"

"Definitely. You guys are a package deal. I can't picture you not together. A lot has changed since graduation, Mac. You're both older and more mature. After she hung out with us that night for the first time in a while, when you got back together, I realized she changed. Maybe it was the professional job, but I just knew she wasn't the same slutty, college student as I knew from the U."

"You thought Laura was a slut?" Robbie asked, surprised.

"Well, sort of, I guess. Lots of girls were. It wasn't a bad thing. Just not good for long term relationships." Before Verchota got too carried away, he got back on the subject again. "I really think you two will be happy together. And I hope someday I can be as happy as you. I'm slightly jealous. But I'm trying. There's a girl that lives upstairs from me, and she's really nice. I'm trying to act like a really nice guy and not like a jerk so maybe she'll want to go out with me."

"Good luck, Verchota," Robbie said sincerely.

"Well, I'm trying to win her over by treating her like you treat Laura now. Making her laugh is a big thing, and I see you make Laura happy every day."

"Thanks. I knew you were a good choice for a best man."

Meanwhile, in Laura's dressing room, she began having some issues herself. She was getting ready and just put the finishing touches on before she looked in the mirror. Seeing herself in her white dress and veil, all ready for the wedding made everything sink in.

"Oh my God!" she said, getting the attention of everyone still in the room. "I can't do this." Ashley walked over to her sister right away.

"Laura, it's fine. It's just nerves. Everything will go perfectly. There's nothing to worry about."

"No, I really can't do this. What I am thinking? I'm getting married! Me, Laura, the girl who hates commitment and promises and everything like that, is making a promise that she has to keep for the rest of her life!"

"Laura, it's fine. You'll be okay," Ashley said again, putting her arms on Laura's shoulders. Laura moved to the other side of the room and took off her shoes.

"What are you doing?"

"Taking off my shoes."

"I can see that, but why? You have to walk down the aisle in ten minutes."

"I'm not going." Ashley looked at Maddie and silently asked for her help. Laura wasn't thinking rationally.

"Laura," Maddie started. "Robbie's going to be waiting for you. You can't just leave."

Laura looked up and wiped the tears which were starting to fall from her eyes. "I can't do this."

"Yes you can," Maddie said, softly.

"I don't want to walk down that aisle knowing I could be making the biggest mistake of my life. And one that I can't easily take back, no less."

"You're not making a mistake. You and Robbie love each other. You were made for each other. I know you're ready for this." Laura shook her head.

Just then the door opened and Izzy walked in with Laura's mother. "Me pretty," Izzy said proudly, and twirled around.

"Yes you are pretty," Maddie told her 19-month-old daughter. Laura's mother then noticed the tears in Laura's eyes.

"What's wrong?" she asked sympathetically.

"She having some last minute nerves," Maddie responded.

"No, they're not nerves. I made a decision and I'm not getting married," Laura stated matter-of-factly.

"And why is that?" her mother asked.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Why not?" Izzy said, imitating Laura's mom.

"Because," was Laura's one word reply.

"We better go tell everyone then. We don't want them sitting around for nothing," Laura's mother said, thinking that her statement would make Laura change her mind.

"Okay. You better go let everyone know." Laura began unzipping her dress, ready to change into her normal clothes. Laura's mother looked over at Maddie and Ashley, silently asking them to leave for a minute. They filed out of the room, with Izzy in tow.

"Laura, please stop."

"No, mom. I'm not getting married. You can tell Robbie whatever you want. I can't do this though. I'm not ready."

"Of course you're not ready. Nobody is. Everyone goes through the final moments when they rethink everything. But it all works out in the end. You and Robbie love each other."

"But being married will change everything," Laura said.

"It really doesn't change all that much. And what it does change is for the better. Just think of all the fun you have with Robbie. And think of everything you've been through together. And try to picture yourself in thirty years. Don't you want the same thing that you've had for the last two?"

"I guess. But that doesn't mean anything. What if we stop loving each other?"

"Honey, you won't stop loving each other. Not with how strong your love has been over the last two years. You and Robbie were made for each other." After letting the words sink in with Laura for a minute, she continued. "What are you most afraid of?"

"I don't know," Laura admitted honestly after a minute. "I guess that we'll start fighting and break up. It' happened so often in the past."

"And you've always gotten back together. Even after months apart."

"Well, yeah, I wouldn't be standing here if we didn't get back together."

"And that's my point. You've always gotten back together. Even when you thought it was for good. I think the number of times you've broken up actually made your relationship stronger."

"You think?"

"Of course. And you know what you're getting yourself into with Robbie. After all, you've been dating so long, you probably know everything about him. The good and the bad."

"But what if something goes so wrong we can't get over it?"

"Have I ever told you about my wedding day?" Laura's mother asked. Laura nodded.

"Well, I mean, my first wedding day."

"You were only married once."

"Yeah, but I had two wedding days."

"What?"

"Your father and I had been dating for six months when he proposed. We planned our wedding for three months later. I don't know why we were in such a hurry, but we were so in love." After a short pause, Laura's mom smiled and continued. "On the morning of the wedding, we both got extremely nervous and snuck out of the church. No one knew where we were. The funny thing was that neither myself nor your father knew the other was MIA."

"You both left your wedding?"

"Yeah. Talk about the bride and groom getting cold feet," she said with a laugh. "Well, we ended up at the same place. The park where we had our first kiss. It was a shock seeing him there, that was for sure. Anyway, we mutually decided that we should postpone the wedding. It was way too fast and we actually both admitted we felt it was too fast for the past few days. Neither of us wanted to say anything though. Three hours later, we went back to the church and told everyone else. At the time, no one was happy with us, but we didn't care. Six months later though, we were ready and had a picture perfect wedding."

"Do you regret waiting?" Laura asked, not entirely sure of the point to the story, though it was amusing.

"Not at all. As a matter of fact, if we didn't wait, our marriage would have probably been very short lived. The next week, we had a huge fight and broke up. We got back together two weeks later, but those two weeks made us both learn a lot."

"So you think Robbie and I should postpone the wedding?" Laura asked, still not understanding.

"No. I think you're a lot more ready than we ever were. You and Robbie already broke up. Several times if I've heard the rumors correctly. You'll be fine," she assured her daughter.

"Mom?"

"Yeah, Laura?"

"Why did you and dad break up for a while?"

"It doesn't really matter. What matters is that we got back together."

"Come on. Tell me."

"It's a long story. I'll tell you sometime, but you're already five minutes late walking down the aisle."

"You're sure I should be doing this?"

"Definitely," Laura's mother said with an encouraging smile. Laura gave her a smile back before quickly getting ready to walk down the aisle.

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The rest of the big day went off without a hitch. As soon as Laura saw Robbie, all of her fears disappeared, and she couldn't believe she even questioned getting married just minutes before. Laura didn't know it, but Robbie also felt better once he saw Laura. Although Verchota had easily convinced him that he should get married, there was still a little uncertainty, mainly from his nerves. Once Laura made it to the altar though, he knew he was making the right decision. Robbie's vows went better than expected, seeing as he was really worried beforehand.

Everyone had a lot of fun at the reception too, but by the end of the night, everyone was tired out. Robbie and Laura seemed to be the only ones with leftover energy. They were far too happy and excited to be tired. No one would have ever even been able to guess they were each almost having second thoughts hours before.

It was a good thing they weren't tired, because the newlyweds were leaving for their honeymoon in Hawaii the next morning. They wanted a nice, relaxing trip before making their move to the Big Apple.

Between last minute packing, various other celebration activities, and considering their flight was at six the next morning and they were both excited, neither Robbie nor Laura got much sleep that night at all.

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Hawaii was more amazing than Laura could have imagined, and that was before they even made it out of the hotel. Robbie booked the honeymoon suite, not really knowing what to expect, but he was very impressed. There was a Jacuzzi right in the room, and a king size bed. There was also a complimentary celebration breakfast, where they could order room service free of charge one day. Along with that, the balcony on their room had a wonderful view of the beach.

"It's beautiful," Laura said, standing on the balcony and gazing out at the miles of beach.

"Want to go for a walk on the beach?"

"Yeah, let's go," Laura said.

Later that evening, when they were tired of the beach and finished dinner at a restaurant a mile down the road, the newlyweds came back to their hotel to enjoy the suite. They began kissing and as things started getting really intense, Robbie slightly pulled away and looked at Laura.

"I think we should make use of that hot tub," he said.

"That's a great idea," said Laura. "If we make it all the way over there." Laura pushed Robbie back on the bed and kept kissing him.

"Well, there's always tomorrow," said Robbie, knowing they wouldn't be using the hot tub that night.

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"Can you believe we're married?" Laura said as they were lying next to each other in the big bed, taking up not even half of it because they were so close to each other.

"It doesn't seem real," Robbie said. "The whole wedding thing seems like it was just a dream or something."

"Yeah. I don't feel much different than I did before. I think it's finally starting to sink in though."

"It still hasn't sunk in at all for me. It probably won't until the honeymoon's over."

"Yeah, that's when the real married life starts," Laura said with a laugh. "I'm not worried though."

"I'm excited," said Robbie. "And we'll be able to start a family . . . "

"Yeah. Should we wait a while, or try right away, or just let whatever happens, happen?" Laura asked.

"I don't know," Robbie said. "I think we should enjoy married life a little first. And get settled in New York. But if something were to happen like say, on our honeymoon, it wouldn't be a bad thing."

Robbie and Laura spent the rest of the week enjoying Hawaii and everything about being married. By the end of the week, they were a little excited to get back to reality though, mainly because now they could start their real life as a married couple, and within a week or so, they would be getting settled in New York City.

A/N: Okay, I hope you all liked it. The strippers were included especially for Bluehaven4220, who wanted them for OC's bachelor party. And NellieBly413672 inadvertantly gave me the idea for Laura's little meltdown like thing. I just wanted to thank her for the idea even though she gave it to me without knowing it. (See, reviews are good for something!)


	36. Chapter 36

NellieBly413672: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it and thought it was cute. And you'll see about Robbie and Laura having a kid of their own in this chapter. They might be just about ready. Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

justlikewedo: Aw, thanks. Glad you liked it, and I hope you like this chapter too.

meadow567: Thanks, glad you liked it. Enjoy the chapter.

Bluehaven4220: Yes, especially for you, lol. Cuz you wanted them for OC's wedding and there weren't any. So I figured I add some now. I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for the great (and long) review and I hope you like this chapter too!

xcapitalbarbie90: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed it and I'm sorry I couldn't update sooner. I hope this chapter's worth the wait though.

A/N: Sorry again. I'm not going to go through explaining why this wasn't up earlier, because you probably already know... anyway, it's up now. I hope you all enjoy. Sadly, the story's almost over though. Only one more chapter, possibly two. Enjoy and please review! They make me really happy.

Chapter 36

One year later, September 1982

Laura and Robbie enjoyed their first year of married life, and their time in New York. At times it was hard with Robbie traveling constantly, but the second he got home, Laura knew that missing him for a few days was worth it. Laura was working at a local New York news station, and even though she wasn't a big news anchor on a nationally known telecast, she loved reporting. She took a leave during the summer though, so she and Robbie could spend their summer in Minnesota, with their families. Before heading back to New York for training camp, Robbie and Laura decided to take a trip to Chicago.

Neither had ever been there before, but since they both wanted to go, now was the perfect time. The O'Callahan's had a house in the Chicago suburbs, so Robbie and Laura got to see their two friends and favorite niece. Izzy was growing up fast, now a few months shy of turning three, and they hadn't seen her since the wedding a year before.

The McClanahan's pulled up to a big, beautiful house, where Maddie and Jack lived. Before they even got out of the car, Maddie came out to greet them with the adorable brunette with pigtails, following close behind.

"How are you?" Maddie asked them.

"Great. It's good to see you," Laura said. "And Izzy is getting so big! I don't believe it. It's amazing how different she looks and it's only been a year."

"I know. It seems she gets bigger every day," Maddie said. "And I've been told she's a little short for her age." Laura bent down to Izzy's level and looked at the adorable little girl. She was the perfect combination of her parents with her mother's dark brown hair and Jack's waves in her hair, and her eyes were a blue green color, like a mix between her parent's eyes.

"This for you," Izzy said, handing Laura a picture from a coloring book.

"Thank you, Izzy. It's beautiful," she said, taking the picture.

"Izzy loves coloring," Maddie explained. "But she definitely her father's daughter. Jack had her on skates practically since she could walk, and this past summer, he bought her a little hockey set to play with, and she absolutely loves it." Maddie turned to her daughter. "Will you show Uncle Robbie how you shoot the puck?"

"Yeah, watch me," she said, running off to get her hockey stick. Robbie followed her and watched her for a few minutes.

"Jack will be back in a few minutes. He ran out to pick up a few things from the store. How about a tour of the house while we wait for him?" Maddie asked Laura. "Robbie, we'll be inside. You can stay out here with Izzy if you want."

"Okay," Robbie said, who was now playing hockey with the little girl.

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The few days in Chicago were a lot of fun for Robbie and Laura. There was so much to do in the city. To thank Maddie and Jack for letting them spend the week at their house, they offered to babysit Izzy while they had an afternoon and evening to themselves. Robbie and Laura took Izzy to the zoo.

"Which animal do you want to see first?" Laura asked Izzy.

"Monkeys!" she shouted excitedly.

"Okay, let's go." Once they were close enough to see the monkey cage, the toddler ran ahead, excited to see her favorite animal.

"Laura, remind me again why you insisted on bringing a stroller, when she's not even using it. I feel sort of funny pushing an empty stroller around," Robbie told his wife.

"Because, she might have energy now, but in a couple of hours, I can guarantee she'll be sleeping in there."

After they saw monkeys, tigers, bears, giraffes, and various other animals, Robbie started getting hungry and then saw an ice cream stand.

"Who wants ice cream?"

"Me!" Laura said, looking at Izzy who didn't respond. After hearing Laura's reply though, Izzy quickly agreed.

"Me!" Izzy said, jumping up and down.

"What flavors?" Robbie asked.

"I'll have chocolate," Laura said.

"Izzy, do you want chocolate, vanilla, or twist?" Izzy looked at Robbie, not really sure what to say. Robbie went ahead and ordered the first two. "Izzy, do you want vanilla like me or chocolate like Aunt Laura?"

Izzy looked between the two ice cream cones and said, "Nilla, like you," with a smile.

"Vanilla it is," Robbie told the girl at the stand. "Can I have rainbow sprinkles on that one?"

A minute later, Robbie handed Izzy a vanilla cone with rainbow sprinkles. Izzy's eyes went wide with delight.

By the time Robbie and Laura were done with their ice creams, Izzy still hadn't gotten down to the cone, and it was dripping all over. The ice cream was also all over her face.

"We probably should have gotten hers in a dish," Laura said.

"Yeah," Robbie agreed. "Here, Izzy, let me see that for a minute," Robbie said. He licked the sides of the cone where it was dripping before handing it back to Izzy.

She started happily licking the ice cream again, but it quickly started dripping again. This time Robbie just got a dish and dumped the ice cream inside. Izzy just continued eating the ice cream, not caring whether it was in a cone or a dish.

"Yeah, we definitely should have gotten a dish originally. She doesn't even care about the cone," Robbie said.

The rest of the afternoon was spent running around the zoo, and by dinner time, Izzy was noticeably exhausted sitting in her stroller. Robbie and Laura were tired too. They weren't used to chasing a toddler around all day. They stopped for a quick dinner before heading back to the O'Callahan house.

"Did you have fun at the zoo?" Jack asked Izzy, who had just woken up after being in her car seat. She sleepily nodded.

"She loved the zoo. We had dinner and everything, and she's so tired, my guess is that she'll sleep the rest of the night," Robbie told him.

"Where did you go for dinner?" Maddie asked.

"She wanted McDonald's," Laura said. "We let her pick, and out of all the places she could have picked, she picked McDonald's."

"It's her favorite," Jack explained. "I swear she can spot those golden arches from a mile away."

After Laura and Robbie were in bed, they talked about how much fun they had with Izzy that day.

"It was so much fun spending time with Izzy today. She's the cutest little thing," Laura said.

"Yeah, she is," Robbie said, looking over at Laura and wondering what she was thinking.

"It's not that I don't like spending time with you, but it was so much fun having someone else around too."

"Yeah." Robbie rolled over on his side and draped his arm over her stomach.

"What are you thinking?" he asked. Laura looked at him with a cute expression and bit her bottom lip.

"I sort of want a baby of our own," Laura said. Robbie smiled.

"I do too."

"Wanna try?" She asked, a smile lighting up her face.

"Right now? Laura, we're in someone else's house," Robbie reminded her, though smiling at the suggestion.

"They'll understand."

Robbie laughed, then said, "How about we wait until we get to New York? It's only a few days away."

"All right. But then we seriously have some work to do."

"You won't hear me complaining," Robbie said with a grin.

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Three months later, it was Christmas time in New York City. Laura loved the holiday in the city, because Rockefeller Center was beautiful all lit up and when it was snowing everything was even prettier. That night, Robbie and Laura were planning on going skating in the park.

While they were skating around Laura suddenly stopped in the middle of the rink and smiled at Robbie.

"Why'd you stop?"

"Because, I wanted to kiss you," Laura said, giving Robbie a quick kiss. Laura still couldn't wipe the smile off her face.

"Okay, what's going on? I know something's up."

"What if this time next year we had a little baby to spend Christmas with?"

"It'd be amazing, but Laura, you're not even pregnant yet. I know it only takes nine months, but how can you be so sure . . . " Robbie stopped mid-sentence when he saw Laura still beaming. "Are you?"

"I think so," she nodded, smiling even more.

"Oh my God!" Robbie said, and picked Laura up, spinning her around.

"Don't drop me, you're on skates!"

"I skate for a living, I can handle it. But you're pregnant?! This is incredible!"

"Robbie, I'm not positive. But I'm a week late, I've been tired lately, and this morning I felt sick."

"Let's go get a pregnancy test," Robbie said.

"Well, I'm going to the doctor's tomorrow."

"Let's get one anyway. I wanna know tonight," Robbie said with a smile.

"All right."

After stopping at several stores, all of which were closed or didn't sell pregnancy tests, Robbie and Laura headed home, knowing they would have to wait until the next day. It felt like the longest night of their lives.

The next afternoon, Robbie got back from practice, excited to hear the news. He was surprised Laura didn't show up at the rink, but then he figured she probably had a lot to do. Knowing her, she was buying baby clothes and starting to furnish a nursery. Robbie got a little something for the baby himself. It was a cute NY Rangers onesie, so the baby could cheer on Robbie when it was born.

"Laura? Are you here?" Robbie got no reply and continued walking through the living and toward their bedroom. "Laura? How was it? Are we nine months away from being parents?" Robbie then saw Laura sitting on their bed. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. "Baby, what's wrong?" he asked, immediately sitting next to her and wrapping his arms around her. Laura began crying again.

"I'm not pregnant," she sobbed. Robbie frowned, and didn't know what to say at first. He was disappointed, but didn't want to show it too much and upset Laura even more. Robbie was really glad he left the bag with the onesie in the car though.

"It's okay. We'll have a baby eventually," he told her, trying to figure out a way to comfort her.

"I really thought I was," Laura said sadly.

"I know, baby," Robbie said, rubbing her back and kissing her forehead.

"Are you mad?"

"Laura, why would I be mad?"

"You were so excited, and now I'm not even pregnant," she said, sadly. "I'm sorry."

"Laura, it's okay. It's not your fault. I'm not mad. I'm disappointed, just like you are, but I'm not mad."

Laura wiped her face. "I really wanted a baby."

"We'll have one. It just takes time," Robbie told her.

"We've been trying three months," she said, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"I know. But it doesn't happen overnight."

Laura just looked at Robbie, and he saw her smile for the first time that afternoon. He then realized the irony of his words and smiled too.

"Well, I guess it sort of does happen overnight, but figuratively it doesn't," he explained. Then he gave up trying to explain what he meant and said, "Give me a break, I'm trying to make you feel better."

"Well, you're doing a pretty good job," Laura said, then wrapped her arms loosely around his neck and brought her face only inches away from his. "I'm so lucky to have you for a husband."

"And I'm so lucky to have you for a wife," Robbie responded before he kissed her. "And I promise that we'll have a baby. Maybe we should try even harder."

Laura just rolled her eyes and laughed in response to what her husband was hinting at.


	37. Chapter 37

meadow567: Yay for the hockey season! I'm so glad it's finally here.

Bluehaven4220: Yeah, the story's almost over. But you can look forward to my next one. I have a couple ideas, but it won't be out for a while. I'm sorry you were disappointed for Robbie and Laura. Maybe this chapter will make you happy. Thanks for the review!

NellieBly413672: Thanks for the review! Glad you liked it. And I love cute little kids too. Part of the reason I want to be a pediatrician. They're so cute. And there's more of cute Izzy this chapter.

A/N: Okay, I know you all probably hate me. It's been over two weeks since I updated, but school sucks. I hope everyone enjoys the chapter. Oh yeah, I wanted to include some Maddie, Jack, and Izzy stuff, especially for the people that read Glory Days, so there's a little of that in here too.

Chapter 37

_September, 1983_

The rest of the hockey season went by, and so did the summer and Robbie and Laura's second anniversary. Before they knew it, Robbie was starting training camp again. Laura had gone to the store one morning, and Robbie was already home when she got back.

"Hey honey. You're home early."

"Yeah, we had a light day today. How are you?" Robbie asked and gave Laura a kiss.

"Good. I just got a few things we needed at the store." Robbie helped Laura carry the grocery bags to the kitchen and she began putting everything away.

"Hey Laura," Robbie started.

"Yeah?"

"Why didn't you tell me you had an appointment with Dr. Montgomery tomorrow?" Robbie asked casually.

"I didn't know you needed to know when I had doctors' appointments."

"Well, I don't but . . . I know you just had an appointment like two months ago. If that was a routine check-up, why are you going again?" Before Laura answered, Robbie asked what he had been wondering since the doctor's office called shortly before to remind Laura about the appointment. "Do you think you're pregnant?"

"Robbie, I just have an appointment."

"You think you're pregnant, don't you?" Robbie said, smiling. Laura couldn't hide her smile anymore.

"Maybe."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Laura walked over to him and took his hands in hers.

"I didn't want to say anything until I was sure. I mean, I might not be. I don't want to get your hopes up again. I know how disappointed you were last time."

"But you were too, baby."

"I know, but it's better to have one disappointed person than two," Laura explained, her eyes getting a little teary.

"So you were just going to keep it to yourself and bottle it up inside?"

"I guess." Robbie wrapped his arms around her.

"I want to be there Laura. If you're not pregnant, I want to be able to comfort you and hold you, and maybe even cry with you." After a pause, he added, "Plus, if you are pregnant, I have to be there to be excited with you."

"Okay. Sorry I didn't say anything."

"Maybe it's a good thing you didn't say anything, because now I only have to wait a day to find out. You've probably had a wait a few days."

"A week and a half," Laura admitted quietly.

"You've been keeping this a secret a week and a half!" Robbie exclaimed, barely able to believe it.

"Robbie, please promise me you won't get your hopes up."

"I'm not."

"You are. I can tell. You're already acting like I'm pregnant. And you haven't stopped smiling." Robbie tried to hide his grin. "I'm just saying this because since Christmas, I've thought that I was maybe pregnant twice and I wasn't."

"And you didn't say anything?"

"Like I said, I didn't want to disappoint you."

"You are too much," Robbie said and kissed her.

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The next day, Robbie got home early from practice to take Laura to the doctor's. For Laura's sake, he tried to hide his excitement. It was hard though. In an hour he could be nine months away from being a dad!

Robbie thought Laura was containing herself well. He knew that she probably just didn't want to get her hopes up, especially because the same thing had happened before. Luckily, the wait for the doctor wasn't long. Robbie went in the back with Laura.

The test was done in a matter of seconds and the doctor told them she would be back soon with the results. Neither Robbie nor Laura said much while waiting. They were both thinking and hoping the same things though.

"I have the results," Dr. Montgomery said calmly, walking back in the room. "I know you've been trying for a while, and it's nice that Robbie's here for support. I'm glad he found out about the appointment." Laura explained that she only wanted to give Robbie good news the previous times.

"So, what's the news? Am I pregnant?" Laura asked, still trying not to sound too hopeful.

"Laura and Robbie," the doctor began, a smile quickly spreading on her face. "I'm very happy to be the one to give you the news that you're going to have a baby."

"Oh my God!" Laura screamed, jumping up and throwing her arms around Robbie. Robbie was thrilled too, and picked Laura up, then he set her down and gave her a long kiss.

"This is incredible! We're going to have a baby!" Robbie said, smiling.

"I don't believe it!" Laura said. "I thought it's never happen!"

"You're about four weeks along, Laura."

Laura quickly did the math in her head. "That means we're only eight months away. I'll be due in like, early May."

"Yep, it looks like it'll probably be the first week in May. I'll explain a few things about what you can expect over the next several months, and I'll get your prenatal vitamins and anything else you might need," the doctor told Laura.

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Meanwhile in Chicago . . .

One afternoon in the middle of October, OC got home after practice and found Maddie baking a cake. "That smells delicious," he commented. "What's the occasion?"

"Just to celebrate," Maddie said.

"Celebrate what?" OC asked, picking up the spatula to lick some batter.

"Hey! I was still using that," Maddie said. OC got a new spatula out for her to use.

"So what are we celebrating? And where's Izzy?" OC asked, wondering why his daughter wasn't helping Maddie. She loved helping to bake.

"Izzy's at a friend's house this afternoon," Maddie told him.

"And you're baking a cake? Maddie, I can think of a better way to celebrate," he said, raising his eyebrows.

"We're not celebrating Izzy not being home. You asked where she was. We're celebrating the phone call I got today."

"From who?" Before Maddie answered, OC began guessing. "Your parents?" Maddie shook her head. "My parents?" Again, Maddie shook her head. "Your sister?" Maddie gave the same response. "Laura?"

"Actually, Laura did call. She just found out she's pregnant."

"That's great!" OC said. "So we're celebrating the baby?"

"Yep, we're celebrating the baby."

"But why are we celebrating their baby when they're in New York?" Then OC realized something. "Maddie, did you invite Robbie and Laura here again? Because even though we're sort of friends, it doesn't mean I want to see him all the time. Can't you invite Rizzo over or something? We haven't seen him and his wife in six months. And we haven't seen Silky in a while. Don't you want to meet his fiancee?"

"Yeah, but just so you know, I didn't invite Robbie and Laura."

"Okay, so why are we celebrating their baby?"

"We're not celebrating their baby."

"Then whose are we celebrating?"

"Ours." OC gave her a funny and confused look. "Maddie, what are you talking about? We're not having a baby. Besides, the doctor said it'd be a miracle if we had any more kids. There was too much damage when Izzy was born."

"Well, apparently we have a miracle baby on the way then."

"You're pregnant?!"

"Yeah."

"Oh my God! I don't believe it!" OC said. He kissed Maddie. "I don't believe it," he said again.

"So you're happy?" Maddie asked.

"Of course I am! I'd love to have another baby."

"Me too. I was completely shocked when the doctor told me. And I was especially surprised when I was told that I'm already three months along."

"Three months?!"

"Yeah. I really didn't have many symptoms. I just thought I was a little more tired than normal. And ever since Izzy was born, my periods have been irregular, so it didn't even dawn on me."

"Wow. Izzy's going to be thrilled."

"I know. I can't wait to tell her. She's wanted a baby brother or sister for a while now."

"This is incredible," OC said.

"The doctor said I have to be really careful though. He doesn't want anything happening to me or the baby by doing too much."

"Everything's fine with the baby though right now, right?"

"Yeah, and since the first trimester is basically over, I shouldn't have to worry for a while. The doctor's going to keep a close eye on everything because it's sort of a high risk pregnancy, but . . . I'm pregnant!" Maddie said, with a huge smile, obviously very excited.

"Wait, so Laura's pregnant too?"

"Yeah, I didn't tell her that I am yet, because I wanted to tell you first, and I figured we'd wait a while."

"When can we tell Izzy?"

"How about in a couple weeks? We'll tell everyone once I hit the four-month mark."

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"Izzy, can you come in here for a minute," Maddie called to her daughter one morning in the middle of November. Maddie and OC had decided to tell her about the baby that morning. They were so excited to tell her.

"Yeah Mommy?"

"Mommy and Daddy have something to tell you." Izzy looked between her parents, wondering what it could be.

"You know how you want a baby brother or sister?" OC asked his daughter.

"Yeah, I really want one. That's what I want for Christmas or my birthday," she said matter-of-factly.

"Well, Mommy's going to have another baby. It won't be here before Christmas or your birthday, but it's on the way."

"Really?" Izzy asked, her eyes lighting up. "When is it coming?"

"The baby won't be born until about April," Maddie told her.

"How many days is that?" Maddie laughed a little at her daughter's innocent question.

"A lot of days sweetie. You have lots of time to wait."

"Is it a girl or boy baby?"

"It's going to be a surprise," Maddie told her.

"Where's it now?" Izzy asked.

"It's growing in mommy's tummy," OC told her. Izzy's eyes went wide.

"How does it get out?" she asked her father.

"Well . . . let's just say it's complicated and sort of difficult," OC said, not really wanting to go into further detail.

"How did it get there?" Izzy asked sweetly.

"Um, well, I don't know," OC said, uncomfortably. How should he explain that to a kid going on four?

"You have to know Daddy," Izzy told him. "You know everything."

"I don't know _everything_."

"You said you did," Izzy argued.

"When?" her father challenged her.

"Yesterday," Izzy said with attitude. "You remember, right Mommy? Daddy said he was right cause he knows everything."

"I do remember that Izzy. Daddy did say that." Maddie looked at OC. "So Mr. Know It All, how did the baby get in my tummy?" Maddie raised her eyebrows and smirked, trying her hardest not to laugh though.

"Um, well . . . uhh,"OC started.

"You really don't remember _that_?" Maddie said playfully, giving OC an insinuating look.

"Well, I remember . . . I could never forget _that_," OC said in a low voice, leaning in toward his wife. Before they could kiss, Izzy interrupted.

"I'm waiting for an answer." Maddie and OC pulled apart, looking at their daughter. She definitely had a little bit of an attitude at times, and it was cute because she was so little. Her parents knew that it would cause them grief when she was a teenager though.

"When a Mommy and Daddy really love each other and show it, sometimes God puts a baby inside the Mommy."

"So it's like when you kiss?"

"Yeah, exactly. When we kiss, God knows we love each other and decided to put a baby in Mommy's tummy. It's sort of like magic."

"But then why don't I have twenty bajillion, trillion, kazillion brothers and sisters? You and Daddy kiss every day."

"Not everyday Izzy," OC said. "Trust me, I wish it were every day." Maddie just laughed at OC's hint, knowing he wasn't really talking about kissing. "But it can actually only happen when we're alone," OC continued. "And you, little miss, are just always around," OC told her, then began tickling her. She started giggling.

"Daddy, stop!" she screamed, laughing.

"Stop what?"

"Tickling me!" she said, laughing even more.

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Laura and Robbie went in for a routine check-up just before Thanksgiving. They were excited because they hoped to take sonagram pictures to their parent's house's for the holidays.

The doctor set up the machine and rolled the cold gel over Laura's stomach. Doctor Montgomery listened to the baby's heartbeat for a minute and watched the screen intently.

"Oh, wow," she said, sounding a little confused. Then she smiled.

"Is everything okay?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, everything's fine. The fetal heartbeats are good, and everything's going just wonderfully."

"Great," said Laura.

"Wait, wait, wait," said Robbie. "Everything's not great. You said fetal _heartbeats_. Why did you say fetal _heartbeats_? Because, I may not know much, but I do know people, including an unborn baby, only have one heartbeat."

"She didn't say heartbeats, Robbie. And, if she did, it was a mistake." Laura looked at the doctor for confirmation on this.

"Actually, Robbie's right. I did say heartbeats. And I meant it. You're having twins!"

"Twins?!" Robbie and Laura said at the same time, though Laura's tone was one of pure excitement and Robbie's was a little more shocked and concerned sounding. Their corresponding facial expressions told the doctor everything she needed to know.

"Robbie, isn't this great?" Laura asked. "We've tried for so long that now we not only get one baby, but two babies! Isn't this exciting?"

"Yeah," said Robbie, unenthused. Laura was too excited to notice Robbie's lack of excitement though.

After the appointment, the doctor caught Robbie alone outside while Laura was getting dressed to leave.

"You know, Robbie. A lot of fathers react the same to twins as you. But trust me, it's not as bad as it may seem."

"You don't have to lie Doctor Montgomery, I have twin siblings, I know twins are rough."

"I'm sure you'll be fine. Once those babies are born, you'll fall in love with them."

"I'm sure I will, and I'm excited. But at the same time, twins seem so overwhelming."

"I know, but you can hold me to my words that it won't be as bad as you think," the doctor said, offering a comforting smile. Robbie still didn't exactly believe her, but smiled back anyway.

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By late January, Laura was really starting to show, especially because she was having twins. At this point, she was 26 weeks pregnant, and only a few weeks away from being in her third trimester. Robbie and Laura had begun shopping for the babies, and although they didn't know the sexes, they had picked out several names. Robbie was having a somewhat difficult time, only because of Laura's moods. With the hormones, Laura would often go from being extremely happy to angry in a matter of minutes, and sometimes minor things made her upset. And although Robbie hated leaving Laura alone for a few days at a time while traveling for hockey, he sometimes took solace in the fact that he had a few days away from Laura.

One morning the day before Robbie was leaving for a few day road trip, Laura was in one of her bad moods. Unfortunately for Robbie, he didn't know until it was too late.

"Laura, did you finish the milk again?" Robbie teased her as he was looking for milk to pour on his cereal. She had just walked into the kitchen.

"Well, I told you to bring some home yesterday because we were getting low, but considering you rarely listen to anything I have to say, you probably ignored it."

"Sorry," Robbie said, knowing it was better not to argue.

"Don't tell me you're sorry, you're the one who wants the milk." Laura went in the refrigerator next to get some juice. "And you ignored me about the orange juice too."

"Sorry. I'll get it today."

"No you won't. I'll get it. It's obvious I can't depend on you to do anything."

"Well, maybe you shouldn't drink as much as you do at a time. I know you're having twins, but you don't need a glass for each kid." Robbie was only teasing and trying to cheer her up, but she took it the wrong way.

"I can't believe you," Laura said disgusted. "Lately it seems like you're mad that we're having twins or something. You make so many references to twins and how much of a handful they'll be and how we need two of everything and whatnot."

"Well, I can't help if the thought of having twins makes me a little nervous."

"Yeah, it makes me nervous too, but I don't complain about it!"

"I'm not complaining!" Robbie said back defensively.

"Fine. Why don't you just go to work? Go play hockey and take your mind off your problems."

"My problems? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Having twins. It's obviously a problem for you."

"It's not Laura."

"Yes it is. You don't want me to have twins," Laura said, beginning to get tears in her eyes. Robbie knew what was coming now. Niagara Falls. "Actually, maybe you don't want a baby at all," Laura continued and really began crying now.

"Honey, I want a baby. I promise."

"Yeah, _a_ baby. We're having _two_ babies. And what happens if you're too overwhelmed with two kids. Then you'll leave me, and I'll be alone."

"Laura, I would never leave you," Robbie said, pulling her into a hug. "And I really am sorry about the orange juice and milk."

"You promise?" Laura asked sweetly.

"Yeah, I promise I'll go to the store."

Laura sniffled, then said, "No, do you promise you'll never leave me?"

"Laura, how could I even think about that? I love you too much. And I will love both of our babies. I'm just nervous. Anyone's first baby is enough stress, but the thought of two . . . what if I'm a bad dad? And with hockey, what if I'm not around enough? I don't want to miss out on raising our kids."

"You won't. You're here enough."

"Last week you said I should quit playing because I wasn't home enough," Robbie reminded her.

"And I was having a bad day, remember?"

"I know, but I've thought about it and it might be better if I stop playing."

"You can't stop playing. We'll manage. Everything will work out all right. It always does."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"And I was also right when I said you should probably leave. You don't want to be late."

Robbie looked at the clock and realized Laura was right.

"I'll see you later. And I won't forget to go to the store."

"Thank you, honey."

"No problem. I love you. See you later," Robbie said, giving Laura a kiss. He then proceeded to go through the rest of his morning routine. "And I'll see you guys later too," Robbie said, rubbing Laura's stomach. He gave Laura another kiss and then kissed her stomach twice too, one kiss for each baby. Ever since Laura had found out she was pregnant, he kissed the baby good-morning, good-night, and many other times in between just because. After Laura found out she was having twins, Robbie began kissing her stomach twice instead of once, so each baby was treated equally. It was just a little something that Laura thought was cute, which is the main reason Robbie kept doing it.

A/N: Sorry to leave it off there. This is only 3/4 or so of the chapter. I didn't get as much done as I wanted to, but I really wanted to update. The remainder will be up Wednesday night or Thursday afternoon at the very latest. It'll be the rest of the pregnancy stuff. And after that, there will be one more wrap up chapter. Then, it'll be sad, but my story will be over. I'll have to work on one of the two new ideas I have. Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter and please review!


	38. Chapter 37 part two

NellieBly413672: I'm gonna be sad when this ends too, cuz I enjoyed writing it. I'm glad you liked the chapter though, and I hope you enjoy this one too!

Bluehaven4220: Lol. And I think you might be onto something... thanks for the review!

meadow567: Yeah, thanks. And when you think about it, it's pretty convenient when the dates are if the twins are born early... Enjoy the chapter!

justlikewedo: Glad you liked it and thanks for reviewing. Enjoy this chapter too!

A/N: I hope this update is fast enough for everyone, lol. This is the second part of the last chapter that I couldn't finish the other day. After this, there's only one more chapter. Like a little closing, wrap up thing.

Chapter 37 part two

_April 1, 1984_

Laura and Robbie were watching TV one night, when Laura suddenly grabbed and held her stomach.

"What's wrong?" Robbie immediately asked.

"I think I'm in labor," Laura said.

"Oh my God!" Robbie immediately went into panic mode. "Okay, I'll get your bag. Stay there. I'll help you out to the car. We need to call the doctor too. I'll be right back."

"Wait, Robbie!"

"What? We need to hurry."

"No it's okay. Let's finish watching the show first. Then we can go."

"No Laura. We need to go now. The babies could be born any minute."

"Robbie, most women are in labor for several hours. We'll be fine."

"Laura, everyone's different. We need to get you to the hospital now!" Robbie didn't understand why Laura was being so calm about everything. "Let's go."

"Robbie, wait."

"What now?"

"We don't need to go."

"Yes we do. I'm calling the doctor."

"Robbie, don't!"

"Laura, if you refuse to leave, I'll call an ambulance." Laura began laughing. "You think this is funny? That's it, I'm calling." Laura realized Robbie was absolutely serious about calling an ambulance at this point and laughed even harder.

"Robbie, wait! Don't call," Laura said, still laughing. "April Fools."

"I know it's April Fool's Day. I'm not an idiot. But if these babies are going to be April Fools babies, you need to get to the hospital."

"They're not."

"If you're in labor, they just might be."

"No, April Fools."

"Laura, I'm not stupid. It's April first, I know that. And apparently-"

"Apparently you are stupid. I meant April Fools about the babies. April Fools like - it's a joke." Robbie looked at Laura quizzically. "I'm not in labor.I was joking. It was an April Fools joke. I just wanted to see how you'd react."

"You're not in labor?"

"No."

"Oh." Robbie thought for a minute, and then began laughing. "I guess that was pretty funny. You really scared me for a minute though. It's still way too early for you to have the babies. I guess it's a good thing you were only joking."

Laura didn't really find it necessary to explain again that a month early was not all that early for twins to be born. Laura knew Robbie was mainly scared because he remembered everything that Maddie and OC went through when Izzy was born. No matter how much Laura insisted that the same thing wouldn't happen to her, Robbie never really took her word for it. She just said, "I sure hope you're more calm, cool, and collected when it happens for real."

"And I hope you're a little more, not so calm," Robbie told her.

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_April 5, 1984 - Chicago_

Early one morning, Maddie and Izzy were laying in Maddie's bed watching _101_ _Dalmatians_ for the third time that week. The "Doggie Movie" was Izzy's favorite and since Maddie was on bed rest, she didn't have much of a choice. Two weeks before that, Maddie had symptoms of pre-term labor, and as a precaution, her doctor prescribed some medication and ordered her to be on bed rest until she was considered full-term. Luckily the countdown to 37 weeks ended the next day. She was so bored not being able to do anything.

Half way through the movie, Maddie began cramping. At first, she thought nothing of it, but once the pain became worse, she knew she was having contractions. Trying to stay calm so she wouldn't scare her daughter, she tried to get up.

"Mommy," Izzy said in a disapproving tone. "Daddy said no getting up. He told me to yell at you if you don't listen."

"I know sweetie, but I need to talk to Daddy."

"He's outside mowin' the grass."

"Can you go get him for me? Tell him Mommy thinks it's time."

"Time for what?" Izzy asked, shrugging her shoulders.

"It might be time for me to have the baby."

"Really?!" Izzy asked, her eyes wide with excitement. "I'm gonna be a big sister!"

"Yes sweetie, and I need you to hurry. Go get Daddy."

"Okay Mommy." Izzy ran out of the room, downstairs, and outside to get her father. "Daddy! Daddy!" Izzy screamed over the lawn mower. OC turned it off when he saw Izzy running over to him.

"What?"

"Mommy's having the baby right now!" Izzy said, almost as if Maddie was literally having the baby at that very moment.

Hearing this, OC immediately ran into the house with Izzy following and trying to keep up. After getting Maddie in the car along with everything she needed, and quickly walking Izzy to the neighbor's, OC and Maddie were on their way to the hospital. Izzy didn't protest having to stay at home too much, because her parents had already explained that she would stay at her friend's house while the baby was being born.

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_New York, later the same day_

It was locker clean out day for the Rangers and when Robbie got home Laura was bouncing with excitement.

"Guess what?"

"What?" he asked back, excited, almost mocking his wife. Laura playfully hit him.

"If you don't want to know I won't tell you."

"I want to know."

"Maddie went into labor this morning. Jack said that so far, everything seems to be going a lot better than with Izzy. It'll still be a while before the baby's born though. She was only having mild contractions and only at about 5 centimeters."

"That's good that everything's going okay. I still remember how scary it was when she went into labor with Izzy." Robbie then added, "Which is why you should be resting. You're having twins, and everyone knows that twins are usually born early. Especially when you're up walking around all day."

"But Robbie, I am so ready for these babies. It's like they're already teaming up against me. All they do it kick and roll around. Then they punch my rib cage and lungs, and after that, they sit on my bladder so I have to pee every ten minutes. I want them out now!"

"It's only another month away, Laur. You can handle it."

"Ha, you make it sound so easy. Maybe you should try carrying them."

"No thanks."

"See," Laura said, and then gave her husband a quick kiss. "Well, you know what Dr. Montgomery told me?" Robbie shook his head. "Sometimes having sex induces labor," Laura said with a hinting expression.

As much as Robbie wanted to take Laura up on the offer, now he didn't. For the past several weeks, Laura hadn't been in the mood, and now that she was, Robbie was put off because it could potentially induce labor. She wasn't having premature babies if he could help it.

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Laura had gone to bed really early that night, because she had been unusually tired all day. She knew that since it was only nine o'clock, OC might call later if Maddie had her baby. Laura told Robbie to wake her up if he heard anything.

An hour after falling asleep though, Laura woke up with radiating pain in her stomach and back. She tried switching positions to see if it would stop, but ten minutes later the pain started again and she realized she must be having contractions.

"Robbie!" she called, hoping he would hear her from the living room. After no one answered, she made her way to the living room where Robbie had fallen asleep watching TV.

"Robbie, wake up."

"Huh? Why? I don't have to be up for another few hours at least. Hockey's over. I don't have practice today," Robbie said, still half asleep and completely unaware it was no where near morning.

"I'm having contractions." This got Robbie's attention quickly and he shot up on the couch.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. It's not a joke this time. They're about ten minutes apart."

"Okay. I'll get dressed and put everything you need in the car. Then I'll help get you outside."

Robbie and Laura were at the hospital twenty minutes later, and by the time Laura was settled in her room, the contractions were about five minutes apart. The doctor assured them that twins are always expected early, and even though she was still a month away from her due date, everything would most likely be fine. Since the doctor didn't expect Laura to be ready to give birth for another few hours, Robbie decided to call their families. It was almost eleven now, but it was even earlier in Minnesota, and he knew everyone would appreciate knowing Laura was in labor.

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Maddie's labor went a lot better than with Izzy, but on the downside, it was also longer. Izzy's labor had come on so suddenly, and progressed quickly, but this time she was relaxed and in barely any pain until later that evening. Finally, at 12:01am on April 6, 1984, thirteen hours after she arrived at the hospital, the O'Callahan's welcomed their second baby, Michael David O'Callahan into the world. He was a healthy, six pounds, three ounces, and nineteen inches long.

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It was a long, hard night and following morning for Laura, seeing as she was in labor for ten hours already and the contractions still hadn't progressed any further. At first, the doctor told Laura that she was progressing at an unexpectedly fast rate, but after the first stage of labor, things slowed down a lot.

So far, the birthing experience was far from what Laura had imagined. Currently, she was watching TV and was only in a little pain for thirty seconds every five minutes during the contractions.

Shortly after eight in the morning, the contractions worsened and things were finally picking up. The contractions lasted longer and were coming closer together now.

"I need ice," Laura yelled at Robbie. She tried to breathe and not focus on the pain, but it was hard. It was hard for Robbie too, much harder than he imagined.

"I think my hand will be permanently black and blue after tonight," he joked. "I never realized how strong you were, Laur."

Between painful contractions, Laura managed to get out, "If you're in so much pain, I'd like to see your legs in stirrups!"

"Point taken," Robbie said as another contraction began. "I can't believe we're going to be parents in a few hours. We'll really finally have kids." Laura didn't respond because she was wincing through pain, so Robbie continued. "Remember when we first met. That night, neither of us ever imagined this in our future. Especially being together, you know. And yet, here we are, about to become parents!"

"Don't make me regret it," Laura said.

"I'm not, but it's just amazing, isn't it?"

"Robbie, you need to learn when to shut up!" Laura said as the contractions became almost constant.

"It shouldn't be much longer Laura. The first baby will be here within the hour," the doctor told her. "Robbie, maybe you can be a help by trying to focus her on her breathing," the doctor suggested, knowing he needed some advice on what exactly to do.

"Keep breathing Laura," Robbie encouraged her.

A few minutes later, Laura wanted to push.

"Not yet Laura. You're not there yet," the doctor explained. "Try not to push until I tell you to."

An hour later, at nine in the morning, Laura was only a few minutes away from delivery.

"Laura, you're almost there," the doctor told her. "In a few minutes you're going to start pushing hard."

Fifteen minutes later, the first baby was born.

"Congratulations. You have a baby boy," the doctor said, as the baby's cries filled the room.

"Hear that Laura, we have a son?" Robbie said. Laura sort of smiled, and breathed a sigh of relief. She was almost done. Robbie looked over at the baby, who was still covered in slime and all wet. He couldn't wait to hold him though.

"Okay, you'll have a little break. It looks like the second baby isn't quite ready yet. We'll have you push again in a few minutes."

A little over an hour later, the second baby was born.

"Congratulations again. Now you have a little girl." More crying filled the room. Robbie cut the umbilical cord and watched the nurse dry off his little girl.

"She's beautiful Laura. They're both beautiful."

Minutes later, Laura pushed out the placenta and was finally done. She was relieved and extremely exhausted, considering she'd been up almost all night. By the time Laura was taken from the delivery room into her room, all she wanted to do was sleep. Robbie was in the nursery with the babies and brought them a little while later, after Laura had a little time to rest.

"Here they are," Robbie said, coming in Laura's room, wheeling the babies in their nursery cribs. Laura smiled.

"They're adorable!"

"Yeah, they are." Robbie set each baby in one of each of Laura's arms.

"We have to name them."

"Yeah. I know we talked about Kayla or Kaitlin for girl's names, but I really think she looks more like a Kayla," Robbie said.

"I like Kayla. Let's go with that."

"What do you want for her brother then?"

"I really like Cory. I know we talked about a few names, but I like Cory the best. It fits well with Kayla too."

"Okay, Cory it is. Cory and Kayla McClanahan." Robbie sat on the edge of Laura's bed, looking at the babies. Both Laura and Robbie just sat in awe of their two precious babies for a few minutes, thrilled that they were finally here.

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Later that evening, Robbie left the hospital and decided to give OC a call. He wanted to know how everything was with Maddie and also let them know that Laura had her babies. Izzy answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Izzy. It's Uncle Robbie."

"Uncle Robbie, guess what?!" Izzy didn't even give him a chance to guess. "I'm a big sister!"

"You are?" Robbie said, trying to sound surprised.

"Yeah, my brother's name is Michael David O'Callahan."

"That's great that you're a big sister now."

"Yep."

"Well, I have some news too."

"What?"

"Aunt Laura had her babies too."

"She did?"

"Yeah, this morning."

"That's just like my Mommy." Robbie was confused, because he thought Maddie went into labor yesterday, but he didn't say anything. He figured he'd get the details from OC later.

"Their names are Cory and Kayla. We have a little boy and a little girl."

"How come Aunt Laura got two babies but my Mommy only got one?"

"Um, well, your Mom already had you. Laura didn't have any yet. Now Aunt Laura and your Mom both have two kids."

"Oh, okay."

"Is your Daddy busy?"

"He's outside talking to people."

"Okay. Can you tell him that I called?"

"Yep. Bye Uncle Robbie."

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The day after Michael was born, OC brought Izzy up to see Maddie and her new brother. Izzy ran into her mother's room.

"Mommy!"

"Hi sweetie!"

"Are you feelin good?" she asked Maddie. OC told Izzy to ask how Maddie was feeling.

"I'm a little tired, but I'm happy to see you," Maddie said with a smile.

"I made you a card," Izzy said, and handed her a card.

"It's beautiful Izzy. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Where's my brother?"

"He's in the nursery, but the nurse is bringing him in soon."

A few minutes later, the nurse brought Michael into the room. Izzy gasped with delight at the sight of her baby brother.

"Oh my gosh! That's my brother?"

"Yeah, that's Michael," OC told her.

"He's little."

"You were even smaller than that when you were born," OC told her.

"I was?" Izzy asked, surprised.

"Yeah."

"Do you want to hold him?" Maddie asked.

"Yeah!" Izzy answered.

"Okay, sit in the chair over there and Daddy will give him to you." OC showed her how to hold the baby and laid him in her arms.

"Hi Michael. I'm your big sister." Izzy talked to the baby and held him for a little while. Just before Jack was ready to take Izzy home, Maddie told Izzy to look in her bag for a box.

"That's for you. It's just a little something I got you because you're a big sister now."

"I get a present?" Izzy asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Yeah."

Izzy tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box to see a nice doll laying inside.

"Now you can take care of your baby just like I take care of Michael."

"Thank you, Mommy!" Izzy ran over and hugged her Mom. Then she went back to the box with her doll. "Look Daddy, there's even a bottle too so I can feed her!"

"Yeah, that's great, Izzy."

"What are you going to name her?" Maddie asked.

"Is Michael just a boy's name?" Izzy asked.

"Yeah, but you could name her Michelle. That's like Michael, but it's a girl's name."

"Okay, her name's Michelle then. Almost like my brother's name."

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Later that afternoon, Maddie and Laura got to talk on the phone from their hospital rooms. They thought it was amazing that they went into labor at the same time. Neither one could wait to see each other, and they already began making plans for visiting one another over the summer.

Two days after all three babies were born, Robbie and Laura brought Cory Alexander and Kayla Danielle McClanahan home from the hospital, and Maddie and OC brought Michael home.

That summer, when the babies were three months old, Robbie and Laura stopped in Chicago before heading back to New York. They had spent the majority of the summer in Minnesota, mainly so the babies' grandparents got to see as much of their grandchildren as possible.

Maddie and Laura were especially excited to see each other, because it had been so long and so much had happened with the babies all being born.

"I still can't believe we had our babies at the same time," Laura said as everyone was sitting around the O'Callahan's living room with the babies.

"I know!" said Maddie. "So it hasn't been too rough having twins?"

"Not really. They tend to cry at the same time though, and sometimes it seems like they do it on purpose. Other than that, they're pretty good babies."

"How do you like parenthood, Mac?" OC asked.

"I love it. It's even better than I imagined. They're both just so cute. Kayla smiled for the first time about a week ago, and Cory rolled over yesterday. It's just amazing. I can't believe they're three months old already," Robbie said.

"I know. It goes by so fast. I remember when Izzy was three months old like yesterday."

"That was about the time we won the Gold," Robbie said. "It does seem like yesterday."

"Have you talked to any of the guys recently?" Laura asked Maddie and OC.

"Mainly just Rizzo and Jimmy," OC said.

"I talked to Buzz a few weeks ago," Robbie said. "We should try to get everyone together for a reunion or something. Maybe we can do a five-year thing. That would be fun." The guys talked for a little while about the idea of a reunion while the girls played with Izzy and the babies. All of a sudden, Robbie and OC heard something that got their attention.

"What?" they said at the same time. Maddie and Laura looked at each other and laughed.

"We didn't know you were paying attention," Laura said.

"We are now," OC said in response.

"There is no way Kayla is ever going on a date. Not before she's at least thirty," Robbie said. "And when she is thirty, there is still definitely no way she is going on a date with an O'Callahan."

Maddie and Laura had been talking about the fact that Maddie had a boy and Laura had a girl that were the same ages. It had casually been mentioned that it would be funny if they ended up married one day.

"Don't worry, Mac," OC continued. "I have no intention on ever letting my son date, or even worse, marry a McClanahan either."

"We were just saying it would be funny," said Maddie.

"Well, I won't have my three-month-old daughter being married off already. Let alone to OC's kid. You know what they say. Like father, like son."

"I thought you were friends now?" said Laura.

"Not good enough friends to let our kids get married!" said OC. Maddie and Laura just laughed. No matter how many years went by, the girls knew Robbie and OC would always pretend to still have something against the other, even if Michael and Kayla ever did end up getting married.


	39. Epilogue

NellieBly413672: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! Unfortunately this is the last chapter, but look for my next story probably sometime after the new year starts. Enjoy the last chapter!

meadow567: Well, maybe. But maybe not too. To be honest, I don't even know, lol. I wanted to leave it up in the air, but as a possibility. Anyway, thanks for the review and enjoy the last chapter!

justlikewedo: Aw, thanks. Glad you like it.

xcapitalbarbie90: Well, glad you liked it. Sorry you didn't like the twins names. I would have had a poll, but I forgot because originally the last two chapters were supposed to be one. But I'm glad you liked the chapter anyway and thanks for the review. Enjoy the last chapter!

Bluehaven4220: Yeah, lol. I can too. I'm sad the story is over too. I've been working on it so long. But now I get to write my next one, which I have tons of ideas for. Thanks for the review and enjoy the last chapter!

A/N: Wow, sorry for the very long wait. School's tough, what can I say? Anyway, here it is. The long awaited final chapter. And this is the longest chapter I've ever written, so yay for me. (It's 13 pages in word.) Enjoy and please leave one last little review for me! Oh yeah, and Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Have a nice holiday. I know I'm mainly looking forward to shopping the morning after. :)

Epilogue

October, 1984

Robbie and Laura were really enjoying parenthood. At times, the twins were a handful, and it was especially hard for Laura when Robbie was away, but they managed. One afternoon, Robbie and Laura were relaxing while the babies were sleeping, and taking advantage of having it unusually quiet for a change. It seemed like the twins rarely slept at the same time.

"What should we dress them up as for Halloween?" Laura asked Robbie as she was flipping through a magazine.

"I don't know. It's not like they can go trick-or-treating."

"We still have to dress them up. What were you for your first Halloween?"

"I don't remember. I was a baby."

"So was I, but my mom told me that she made me a pumpkin costume."

"Aw, I bet you were a cute little pumpkin," Robbie said in response. Laura couldn't tell whether he was being sarcastic or not.

"Are you making fun of me?" Laura asked.

"No, I seriously bet you were a cute pumpkin."

"We could dress the twins as pumpkins."

"How about Kayla is a pumpkin, Cory can be . . . " Robbie thought for a minute.

"He's not being a hockey player. He's being something cute."

"Fine. How about a ghost?"

"That's boring."

"So is a pumpkin."

"Fine. Kayla can be something else."

"How about a bunny? Bunnies are cute, and she has that little stuffed bunny that she likes," Robbie said.

"Okay. Now what about Cory?" Just as Laura said this, Cory began crying.

"Well, he's awake," said Robbie.

"I'll get him," Laura said, standing up.

When Laura came back into the living room with the baby, she noticed Robbie rubbing his wrist.

"Is your wrist bothering you again?"

"Yeah, sort of."

"You should talk to the doctor."

"It's fine, Laura."

"But it's been hurting on and off for over a year now."

"Yeah, but I know that they'll tell me I need surgery. And if I have surgery, I won't be playing hockey any more."

"But you've had a good career. And you won't be able to play forever anyway."

Robbie just looked at Laura for a minute, trying to figure out what she was telling him. "So you don't care if I stop playing?"

"No." Laura waited a minute before responding. "I know how much you love playing Robbie, and don't get me wrong, I love watching you and everything. I love that you play . . . but, well, if you weren't playing you'd be with me and the twins more. And I'd definitely like that. We miss you when you're gone. Don't we Cory?" Laura said, now talking to the baby.

"Well, I like playing too, but I would like to be here more often. You know, see the twins grow up. I don't want to miss important things because I'm away. Plus, my wrist is getting worse and worse. I'll really miss it though," Robbie said, talking about playing hockey.

"Maybe you can coach," Laura said. I'm sure there's a high school team that needs a coach or something."

"Yeah," Robbie said, and was then quiet for a few minutes. "Laura, will we stay in New York after I retire?"

"I don't know. I mean, it's nice here, but our families both live in Minnesota. And I'm not working right now anyway. I could easily get a job at a station somewhere else when I'm ready."

"Would you want to move back to Minnesota?"

"Yeah, if you do. It would be nice to have the twins grow up near our families. Then our parents would see them all the time, and I'm sure we could get some free babysitting out of it," Laura said, half joking.

"I think Minnesota would be nice too. We could buy a nice house in the suburbs somewhere and we'd have more space than in the apartment here."

Breaking the couple from envisioning their future were more cries, this time from Kayla.

"I'll get her," Robbie offered.

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Robbie ended up retiring in late November of that year. He planned on staying at least until the end of the season, but an injury during a game changed his plans. His wrist was fractured from a check in the boards and he needed surgery. Since he wouldn't be able to play for at least three months, and that would still be with quite a bit of pain, he decided to let it go. It felt really weird to know he was done playing, but the disappointment in the abrupt end to his career didn't last long. Robbie and Laura became busy right away, searching for a house in Minnesota.

The family of four ended up moving just before the twin's first birthday, into a house in Roseville, a suburb of the Twin Cities area. Robbie got a job working at a financial investment firm in St. Paul, and Laura got a position at WCCO news. They both loved it and were happy with the way everything was going.

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March, 1987

"Mommy, Daddy's home," Kayla shouted from the living room, having seen her father pull in the driveway. Laura was in the kitchen, getting dinner ready.

"Daddy!" Cory and Kayla shouted, and ran to the door as Robbie walked in.

"How are my almost three-year-olds today?" Robbie asked, and kissed both of them. Both Cory and Kayla had stories to tell, and they both went on for a few minutes before Robbie could even go to the kitchen to see his wife.

When Robbie went out to the kitchen, the twins continued playing like they had been before.

"Hi honey," Laura said, walking over to greet him.

"Hi. You look happy today," Robbie said, just thinking Laura had a bit of a glow or something.

"Well, I'm happy to see you," she said, pulling him in for a kiss.

"I'm happy to see you too," Robbie said breathlessly, several seconds later. "And dinner smells delicious."

"Thanks. I'm getting pretty good at cooking. Tonight we're having a new pasta dish that I wanted to try."

"I hope you didn't spend your day off slaving over the stove."

"Not really. Don't forget, we have very active twins as well."

"Have they been wild all day?"

"Let's just say I'll sleep good tonight," Laura said, laughing. "They weren't actually that bad, but we were busy. We went to the store, played a few games, went to the doctor's, baked cookies. You know, the usual."

"Who had a doctor's appointment?"

"Me."

"Oh."

"It wasn't really scheduled. I just called today and was able to get in."

"Oh, okay."

After a minute, Laura finally said, "Don't you want to know why I went?"

"Well, I guess. Nothing's wrong or anything, right."

"Nope. But . . . I'm pregnant," Laura squealed, smiling.

Robbie face broke into a big grin. "You are!" He picked her up and spun her around. "How far along?"

"Four weeks. I was a week late, and I thought I might be, so I figured I'd go in today and find out for sure."

"Did you tell the twins?"

"No, I figured we could do that together," Laura said, smiling.

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The twins were very surprised to find out they were getting a baby brother or sister. Since they had each other to play with all the time, the thought of having another sibling never occurred to either of them. They quickly became excited though, especially when Laura got closer and closer to having the baby.

On a very snowy and cold day in November, Laura had the baby. It was a healthy baby girl, Jessica Nicole McClanahan. She was beautiful and everything they could have wanted. With the twins and their new baby, Robbie and Laura both thought their life seemed pretty complete and they decided that Jessica would be the last of the McClanahan children.

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September, 1989

The twins were five now, and starting Kindergarten that year. It was their first day, and they were very excited. Robbie and Laura both took the morning off so they could watch the twins get on the bus.

"Is it coming yet?" Kayla asked about the bus.

"No sweetie," Laura answered.

"You just asked five seconds ago Kay. Shut up already," Cory told her.

"Don't tell me to shut up!" Kayla yelled back and pushed him.

"Don't push me!" Cory yelled pushing Kayla now.

"Both of you stop it!" Robbie said. "Or you won't go to school."

"But we have to Daddy. It's a law," Kayla told him, matter-of-factly.

"But if you two fight, you'll get kicked out," Laura said.

"Momma, look," Jessica said, pointing to a picture she drew with chalk. It was actually just scribbling - a typical picture for a going on two-year-old.

"That's beautiful Jess."

A bus turned down the street, and the twins began arguing again, over whether it was theirs or not. Laura and Robbie just exchanged a glance. They hoped the twins would behave at school and not fight and argue. Luckily they were in different classes though.

When the twins bus finally arrived, the twins got on barely looking back.

"Aren't you going to say good-bye?" Robbie asked.

"Bye," they said, quickly.

"Say bye to your brother and sister," Laura told Jessica.

"Bye bye," she said with a little wave.

A few minutes later, just after Laura left for work, Jessica looked up at Robbie.

"Kay, Cor comin home now?" she asked.

"Not yet sweetie. You're going to go to Grandma and Grandpa's house now tough," Robbie told her. He was dropping her off on his way to work.

"You too?" Jessica asked.

"No, I'm going to work."

"Me go too?"

"No sweetie, you can't go to work with me. I'm sorry. You'll have fun with Grandma though. Maybe she'll take you to the playground."

Jessica's face lit up. "Slide?" she asked, knowing exactly what playground meant. She loved slides.

"Yeah."

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New Year's Eve, 1989

On New Year's Eve, Robbie, Laura, and the kids went to a New's Year's Eve party at their neighbor's house. There were kids around the twins age, and a few younger kids about Jessica's age, so everyone had a lot of fun. After they watched the ball drop on TV, the kids were getting tired and they went home. Robbie and Laura both had a little too much to drink at the party, and were still wide awake and a little drunk as a result.

"I don't think I've had that much to drink since college," Laura said jokingly after they put the kids in bed.

"Yeah, I'll be feeling this tomorrow," Robbie replied.

"Robbie," Laura began, standing in front of him and wrapping her arms around his waist. "The kids are fast asleep. What do you say we start off the new year in a way we won't forget?"

"I say that's an excellent idea," Robbie said smiling, and then leaned down to kiss his wife.

Things began getting a little heated, and they stopped before they got too carried away.

"Let's go in the bedroom," Laura said, and pulled Robbie toward the stairs.

"We should probably lock the door," Robbie told her.

"The kids won't wake up. They're dead tired."

"But with all the noise we might make, I don't want to take a chance," Robbie said, grinning. Laura smiled back.

"I'll try to be quiet."

"Okay, but we're still locking the door."

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Nine months later, the McClanahan's welcomed a new member to their apparently still growing family. Patrick Dylan McClanahan became known as their little surprise. Even though having another baby was very accidental, Robbie and Laura promised to never refer to Patrick as an accident, because although they were surprised and thought they were done having more kids, they loved having a baby around again.

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June, 1992

As the kids got older, the McClanahan's became busier, as did the O'Callahan's. Laura still talked to Maddie all the time, but they hadn't seen each other in about five years. They planned for the O'Callahan's to visit them in June, just after school ended.

"Mom, how do we know these people again?" Kayla, who was now 8, asked.

"Dad played hockey with Jack several years ago."

"But do we know the kids?" Cory asked. He was excited because Robbie and Laura told him they had a boy that played hockey and was the same age as Cory.

"You met them a few years ago, when Jess was a baby, but you probably don't remember them. You were only four."

"Did you two finish cleaning your rooms like I asked?" Robbie asked, walking into the room.

"Almost," they answered in unison.

"Get up there," Robbie said. "The O'Callahan's will be here any minute.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang and Laura and Robbie answered it.

"Hi Maddie, hi Jack," Laura said, hugging both of them. Robbie said hi too, and invited them inside.

"Oh my god," Laura said, looking at Izzy and Michael. "They're getting so big!"

"I know," Maddie responded. "They're growing up fast on me." Izzy was already 12, and Michael was 8, the same as the twins. They looked the same as Robbie and Laura remembered, just older.

"Kayla, Cory, Jessica, come down here." The twins ran down the stairs, with their four-year-old sister following behind. Patrick was taking a nap. After Maddie and Jack commented on how big Robbie and Laura's kids were getting as well, they all went to play while the four adults got to catch up for a while. It was really nice to see them again, and once the O'Callahan's left, they promised that next time it wouldn't be as long between visits.

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The next several years went by and the McClanahan kids were growing up fast. Robbie coached Cory's hockey team for several years, until he moved up to more advanced travel teams, and that's when Robbie switched to coaching Patrick. Kayla and Jessica were both their mother's daughters, and enjoyed watching hockey much more than playing. Kayla loved dancing and volleyball, and Jessica figure skated and played softball. Laura continued working at WCCO news as the daytime reporter, and Robbie still worked at the financial investment firm.

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May, 2000

"Go Cory!" Kayla shouted from the stands, watching her brother as he skated out before the game. He was a center on the St. Paul Flames travel hockey team and they were in Madison, Wisconsin for a tournament that weekend. Even though Kayla didn't play hockey, she loved the sport and watching her twin play. She was so into the game that she didn't even notice a guy sit down next to her.

"So, who do you know out there?" the boy, about Kayla's age asked. He was pretty cute, with blonde hair and hazel eyes, but by his grin Kayla could tell he had a somewhat cocky attitude, like some of the guys on Cory's team.

"Number 11," Kayla replied, doing her best to act like he didn't impress her at all.

"Is he your brother, or boyfriend?"

"Is it any of your business?" Kayla asked, giving him a bit of her attitude.

"No, but I want to know if he's one of those protective older brothers that will kill me for talking to you, or if he's your big, tough, hockey player boyfriend that will . . . well, kill me for talking to you," he said stupidly, then smiling.

"Well, either way, it looks like you're done for," Kayla said with a smile back. Maybe he wasn't that bad after all. "He's my brother," she then answered. "And he's not that much older. We're twins."

"Oh, sorry."

"That's okay. It happens a lot. So why are you here?"

"My team is playing your brother's team next, so I'm scouting the dangerous players."

"Well, I'm not gonna give you any dirt on any of the players. Sorry."

"That's okay. I'm actually really here because I needed something to do between games and figured I could find a cute girl to talk to."

Kayla looked at him and smiled, blushing a little.

"What team do you play for?" she asked.

"Chicago Blues."

"Oh, I've heard your team is pretty good."

"Yeah, I guess," he said shrugging. "So do your parents make you come to your brother's games, or is there another reason you're here?"

"What? You think I would have to be forced to watch hockey? Do I look like one of those girls?" Kayla asked, flirting with the guy a bit. "Or are you just one of those guys that thinks girls only like hockey for the guys?"

"No. My sister used to play, so I know plenty of girls that like it."

"Well, I like watching. I don't play it, because apparently I'm just like my mom, but I love watching it. I guess it's a Minnesota thing though. If you grow up in Minnesota, you don't have a choice. Hockey's part of life."

"You're from Minnesota?"

"St. Paul," Kayla told him. "By the way, my name's Kayla," she said, remembering she never introduced herself.

"I'm Michael."

Kayla and Michael talked during the first period, and once it was over, they decided to get some hot chocolate from the concession stand. Michael bought it, and promised to find Kayla later, because now he had to go to get ready for his game. Kayla went back to watch Cory. By that time, her parents were in the stands too, with her twelve-year-old sister, because her nine-year-old brother's game was over. He was playing in the tournament too, on a team her Dad coached.

"Where did you go?" Laura asked the sixteen-year-old.

"To get hot chocolate," Kayla said with a smile.

"You met a boy, didn't you," Laura said, immediately judging from the expression on her daughter's face.

"Maybe."

"Hey, what did I tell you? No boys," Robbie said.

"He was nice Dad. You'd like him."

"I doubt it."

After the game, Cory played again, against Michael's team. Kayla forgot to find out what number he was, and there were no names on their jersey's, so she had no idea.

"Laura? Robbie?" she heard from someone behind them. Her parents turned around.

"Maddie!" Laura said, immediately getting up and hugging her. After Kayla's parents greeted the lady, they introduced her to Kayla. Kayla knew who she was now, remembering stories she heard over the years. Maddie's husband and daughter came over a minute later. Everyone chatted for several minutes and they sat down together to watch the game.

"So, Michael's playing in the tournament?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, he's number 13."

"Cory's number 11," Laura said.

Both Cory and Michael played well, and Robbie made a comment about how he liked Michael better than Jack.

"It doesn't look like he takes after you."

"No. He doesn't fight nearly as much."

After the game, which Michael's team won, the O'Callahan's and the McClanahan's decided to meet at a restaurant down the street so they could all see each other for a while. Kayla was disappointed she had to leave without seeing Michael, but hoped that she might see him the next day.

The McClanahan's got to the restaurant second, and saw Jack waving them over to the table.

"Hi," Jack said. He began introducing everyone, since the boys had been playing before. Just before he introduced his son to Kayla though, he realized they looked like the two already knew each other. Laura also noticed, and realized that the boy Kayla met earlier must have been Michael.

"Hi," Michael said to everyone, though only looking at Kayla.

"Hi," Kayla said back. Cory quickly picked up what was going on too.

"Oh boy," he commented, under his breath.

Laura turned to Jack. "I think they met before the game," she whispered.

While they were waiting to order, Laura said how nice it was to see everyone again. "And it's so nice that you come to your brother's games, even though you're 20 now and probably have a lot to do," she told Izzy.

"I love watching," Izzy said. Then she whispered, "And I like the assistant coach, but don't tell my dad."

"Everyone knows you like Justin," Michael said loudly. Izzy glared at him.

"Izzy doesn't like Justin," Jack said, completely oblivious. "Besides, he's 24. Way too old for Isabelle." Izzy just rolled her eyes.

"My dad does the same thing to me," Kayla told her with a sympathetic expression.

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Over the next several months, the McClanahan's tried to really keep in touch with the O'Callahan's, including Kayla and Michael. The 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City were coming up and Herb was coaching the team. The 1980 team was also having a reunion and lighting the torch in the opening ceremony. All of the guys families were going, and everyone was excited because with a few exceptions, most of the guys didn't meet each other's wives and kids.

Kayla was really excited because she was going to see Michael again. He was nice, and she really liked him. And Kayla also knew that her Dad liked Michael. Robbie of course wasn't aware that Kayla was developing a slight crush, so if he ever found out, Kayla knew his opinion of Michael O'Callahan would quickly change.

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February, 2002

Robbie and Laura arrived in Salt Lake City two days before the opening ceremony with their four kids. The rest of Robbie's old teammates were also arriving that day if they were not there already. That night, the guys were getting together to catch up, and after the opening ceremonies, there was a big party for the guys and their families.

Robbie recognized most of the guys right away, because they all looked the same.

"How have you been Rizzo?"

"Hey, Mac. Long time no see. I've been good. You?"

"Yeah, everything's going great."

"How's Laura?"

"Good."

"I heard you were busy for a while there," Silky chimed in. "Four kids?"

"Cory, Kayla, Jessica, and Patrick."

"Wow, I and think raising two is tough," said Rizzo about his two boys.

"Yeah," Silky agreed.

"You have two girls, right?" Robbie asked Silky.

"Yeah. And they're getting to be at that typical teenage girl age. Sometimes I consider moving out until they're in their twenties and the hormones die down a bit," Silky joked.

"You haven't really changed that much, have you?" Mark said, walking up.

"Well, I am happily married now. And I have been for 15 years."

"How did she steal your heart?" Bah asked, who joined them with Mark.

"Well, it's a funny story actually. I sort of stole her . . . from a guy on my team." The guys all laughed, thinking about how that was a typical Silky thing to do.

"What are we discussing over here?" Verchota asked, walking up to the group.

"How some people never change," responded Robbie.

"I like to think I've changed in the last 22 years." After thinking about it he said, "Wow, it's actually been 22 years."

"Yeah. I still remember it like it was yesterday," said Mark. "Oh, and for the record, I think Verchota's changed the most out of everyone."

"Yeah, I finally took Maddie's advice on women and suddenly, all sorts of girls liked me. I felt like Rizzo for a while though," he said laughing.

"Hey! Was that an insult?"

"Not really. Girls always liked you though. I think mainly because you're just an all around nice guy. After I tried some new approaches to women, they all thought I was great. Lisa really was the one for me though," Verchota said, speaking about his wife.

"Well, I'm really glad that everyone was able to get together," said Jimmy. "It's really nice to see all of you again." By this time, most of the other guys had migrated over to join the group as well.

"Remember what it was like when we beat the Soviets?" Rizzo asked everyone, just reminiscing.

"How could anyone forget that? That was the most amazing feeling," said OC.

"All that hard work over those seven months was worth, huh?" said Bah.

"It sure was," a few of the guys answered together.

"Remember Norway?" Mark asked.

"Again, something I don't think anyone could forget," said Silky.

"I thought I was going to die," said Verchota.

"I can still hear Herb saying 'Again' over and over," said Jimmy with a laugh.

"Speaking of Herb," Rizzo began. "I have a little something." He pulled a notebook out of his pocket and opened it. He began reading, "You don't have enough talent to win on talent alone . . . The legs feed the wolf . . . My personal favorite, you're playing worse and worse everyday, and right now you're playing like the middle of next week."

"Are those the Herbisms we wrote down?" Robbie asked.

"Yep." The guys laughed and started talking about them a little. Rizzo read a few more.

"I still don't know what half that stuff means," said Verchota. The rest of the guys agreed.

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During the opening ceremonies, the guys were reminded of the feelings they had during the opening ceremonies and Olympics 22 years ago. After lighting the torch and once everything was finished, the guys met their families for the party. It was impossible for everyone to really get to know everyone else, because there were so many people there. Cory and Kayla mostly hung out with Michael, Cory because he already knew Michael, and Kayla because she liked him. Cory began getting the impression that Michael may like his sister back.

Izzy was by far the most popular person at the party. All of the guys were eager to see what a beautiful woman their 'team mascot' had become.

"I can't believe how old you are now!" said Mark, who hadn't seen Izzy in several years. It was the same for Mark as it was for almost all of the guys though. "We all remember you when you were born."

"And even though you weren't born until December, you were really like the center of the team for the entire seven months. Well, your mom was actually. But you really made everything go the way it did and without you . . . " Verchota stopped, not wanting to let something stupid slip out. He didn't know how much Izzy had heard about what went on leading up the Olympics.

"I know, my dad was a stupid jerk for a while and almost ruined everything," Izzy said with a smile.

"Well, I wasn't going to say that, but yeah, he was."

The guys and their families enjoyed their time together, and they even got to catch up with Herb, Craig, and Doc as well. They ended their night with a toast and hoped they would all see each other again before another 22 years passed.

"As captain," Rizzo started, "It's my duty to make sure we never go 22 years without a reunion again. Maybe we can figure out a way to get together again next year. I really think everyone enjoyed being together again."

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As everyone knows, the team did get together the following year, but it wasn't as happy an occasion as they had hoped. Herb Brooks was in a car crash and died on August 11, 2003. The guys from the gold medal team got together in Herb's honor at his funeral. Although Herb died tragically, his memory will always live on for what he did for the country in giving Americans a chance to hope and believe, and giving 20 guys the chance to live a dream come true.

The story of the 'Miracle on Ice' will continue to be remembered through history, and it will continue to give people everywhere the chance to believe that miracles really do happen and dreams can come true.

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A/N: I hope you all enjoyed. I just want to say thank you again to everyone that reviewed throughout the story. I really, really appreciated the feedback. You have no idea how much they mean to me and how helpful they are (unless of course, you write stories yourself, then you have an idea how much their appreciated). So thanks again!

Oh yeah, my next story will be about Mark and it's in the works now. I'd like to start posting just after Christmas, but it probably won't be up until after the new year begins. I don't have a title yet, but it will be a Mark story so look for that. I wanted to leave a little section as a preview sort of thing, but I couldn't decide what to put in. So you'll just have to wait until it comes out. Until then, have a nice holiday season!


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